Coronavirus (COVID-19)
The Indian Health Service continues to work closely with our tribal partners and state and local public health officials to coordinate a comprehensive public health response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The federal government is working closely with state, local, tribal, and territorial partners, as well as public health partners, to respond to this public health threat.
The IHS formed a Critical Care Response Team [PDF] of expert physicians, registered nurses, and other healthcare professionals provide urgent lifesaving medical care on an as needed basis to COVID-19 patients admitted to IHS or tribal hospitals. The IHS has also rapidly deployed telehealth services both to maintain routine patient care and to allow critical care consultation for COVID-19 patients.
The IHS received over $2.4 billion in new funding to provide resources for IHS, tribal, and urban Indian health programs to prepare for and respond to the coronavirus pandemic. We have worked closely with tribes and urban Indian organizations throughout this pandemic to get resources out to facilities as quickly as possible. Additionally, the IHS has distributed rapid point-of-care testing systems and supplies and remdesivir [PDF], an investigational antiviral medicine to treat certain people in the hospital with COVID-19, at no cost to tribal and IHS facilities.
More information on the IHS response can be found in the IHS Covid-19 Response 100 Day Review [PDF – 411 KB] and Executive Summary [PDF – 207 KB]. This report covers actions taken by the IHS to support federal, tribal, and Urban Indian Organizations between March 6, 2020 through June 14, 2020.
For the latest general information about COVID-19, we encourage everyone to periodically review CDC’s COVID-19 webpage .
COVID-19 in Indian Country Webinar
Join IHS and Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian on February 11 from 2:00-3:30 pm EST for a conversation on combating COVID-19 in Indian Country, featuring IHS Chief Medical Officer Dr. Michael Toedt, IHS Navajo Area Chief Medical Officer Dr. Loretta Christensen, and Great Lakes Area Tribal Health Board Chair Phyllis Davis. The program will be moderated by Dr. Charles Grim, Chickasaw Nation secretary of health and former IHS director. Register here .
COVID-19 Cases by IHS Area
Data are reported from IHS, tribal, and urban Indian organization facilities, though reporting by tribal and urban programs is voluntary. Data reflect cases reported to the IHS through 11:59 pm on January 31, 2021.
|
IHS Area
|
Tested
|
Positive
|
Negative
|
Cumulative
percent
positive *
|
7-day rolling
average
positivity *
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 476,133 | 10,730 | 403,109 | 2.6% | 1.5% |
| Albuquerque | 83,590 | 7,641 | 56,911 | 11.8% | 14.4% |
| Bemidji | 127,828 | 9,498 | 115,218 | 7.6% | 6.6% |
| Billings | 89,834 | 7,065 | 79,518 | 8.2% | 4.0% |
| California | 63,244 | 6,587 | 53,194 | 11.0% | 12.4% |
| Great Plains | 128,486 | 13,572 | 114,350 | 10.6% | 6.5% |
| Nashville | 62,243 | 5,335 | 55,984 | 8.7% | 10.7% |
| Navajo | 216,488 | 29,860 | 146,370 | 16.9% | 16.5% |
| Oklahoma City | 418,320 | 55,890 | 357,308 | 13.5% | 15.2% |
| Phoenix | 153,435 | 22,279 | 130,197 | 14.6% | 14.7% |
| Portland | 90,208 | 6,581 | 83,089 | 7.3% | 6.5% |
| Tucson | 22,601 | 2,562 | 19,885 | 11.4% | 11.3% |
| TOTAL | 1,932,410 | 177,600 | 1,615,133 | 9.9% | 10.4% |
* Cumulative percent positive and 7-day rolling average positivity are updated three days per week.
Website last updated February 1, 2021
