Native Americans' perceptions of federal assistance for coronavirus 2019: A case study

ABSTRACT

As of April 2020, Native Americans were falling ill from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) at a higher rate than the general U.S. population. The problem is that without federal assistance, a vast number of Native Americans could perish from COVID-19. The three research questions and the purpose of the qualitative case study was to understand how members of a federally recognized Native American tribe were dealing with the pandemic, the resources available to fight it, and their perceptions of federal health care resources. The conceptual framework was the capabilities approach. The significance of the study is the potential to reduce the health impact of future public health emergencies on Native American tribes and to contribute to theory and practice in the field of public administration and policy. Five members of a Native American tribe and four professionals who served the tribe were interviewed. Participant responses revealed four themes, two subthemes and two discrepant observations. The themes, subthemes and discrepant observations illustrate an ambivalent view of federal resources. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)