Disparity between AI\/AN and White individuals largest for those aged 20 to 49 years<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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THURSDAY, Dec. 10, 2020 (HealthDay News) — American Indians\/Alaska Natives (AI\/ANs) have disproportionate COVID-19 mortality rates, according to research published in the Dec. 11 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.<\/em><\/p>\n Jessica Arrazola, Dr.P.H., from the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists in Atlanta, and colleagues examined the prevalence of COVID-19 deaths in the AI\/AN population in light of disproportionate mortality experienced during the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) pandemic.<\/p>\n The CDC reported 2,689 COVID-19-associated deaths among non-Hispanic AI\/AN persons in the United States as of Dec. 2, 2020. The researchers found that among 14 participating states, the age-adjusted AI\/AN COVID-19 mortality rate was 1.8 times that among White persons (55.8 versus 30.3 deaths per 100,000). Among both AI\/AN and White persons, COVID-19 mortality rates increased with age, but the largest disparity was seen for those aged 20 to 49 years. The COVID-19 mortality rates among AI\/AN were 10.5, 11.6, and 8.2 times greater than those among White persons for individuals aged 20 to 29, 30 to 39, and 40 to 49 years, respectively.<\/p>\n “These findings suggest that, compared with the White population, the AI\/AN population in the 14 participating states has been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, especially among younger age groups,” the authors write. “Improving the quality of COVID-19 data will be important for AI\/AN communities and their partners to identify populations experiencing excess risk and [to] plan and implement prevention activities and medical countermeasures.”<\/p>\n