‘Trying To Move Heaven And Earth’: Hard-Hit Native American Tribes Waiting For Billions In Relief Fund Sue Government
An argument over which tribes get funds is partly to blame for the delay in delivering $8 billion allocated by stimulus legislation. Other news on Native Americans reports on the response of the Navajo Nation.
The New York Times:
Native American Tribes Sue Over Coronavirus Stimulus Aid
A group of Native American tribes is suing the Treasury Department for failing to provide billions of dollars in coronavirus relief allocated for tribes in the $2.2 trillion stimulus package, setting off one of the most significant legal battles between tribal governments and the United States in years. The human and economic toll of the pandemic has been particularly devastating for tribes across the country, which were already struggling with inadequate federal resources and are now among the most vulnerable and hardest hit by the virus. (Walker and Cochrane, 5/1)
The Hill:
Underfunded Native Nations Battle Coronavirus Outbreaks
Native American health systems are stretching to a breaking point under a growing number of coronavirus cases flooding into rural clinics and hospitals that are unprepared for the case load. At least 3,600 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed by the Indian Health System. The vast majority of those cases are in Navajo Nation, where more than 2,200 people are sick. (Wilson, 5/3)
