Food insecurity in urban American Indian and Alaska Native populations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: Food insecurity is an important social determinant of health that was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Both food insecurity and COVID-19 infection disproportionately affect racial and ethnic minority groups, particularly American Indian and Alaska Native communities; however, there is little evidence as to whether food insecurity is associated with COVID-19 infection or COVID-19 preventive behaviors such as vaccination uptake. The purpose of this study was to evaluate associations between food insecurity, COVID-19 infection, and vaccination status among urban American Indian and Alaska Native adults seen at 5 clinics serving urban Native people. METHODS: In partnership with health organizations in Alaska, Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, and New Mexico, the study team conducted a cross-sectional survey in 2021 to assess food security status and attitudes, barriers, and facilitators for COVID-19 testing and vaccination. Logistic regression was used to examine the association of food security status with sociodemographic factors and COVID-19 infection and vaccination status. Marginal standardization was applied to present results as prevalence differences. RESULTS: Among 730 American Indian and Alaska Native adults, the prevalence of food insecurity measured during the pandemic was 38%. For participants who reported persistent food security status before and during the pandemic (n = 588), the prevalence of food insecurity was 25%. Prevalence of COVID-19 infection and vaccination did not vary by food security status after adjustment for confounders. CONCLUSIONS: High rates of food insecurity among American Indian and Alaska Native communities likely increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite the high prevalence of food insecurity, community-led efforts to reduce COVID-19 infection and increase vaccination uptake across Indian Health Service and Tribal healthcare facilities may have mitigated the negative impacts of the pandemic for families experiencing food insecurity. These successful approaches serve as an important reference for future public health efforts that require innovative strategies to improve overall health in American Indian and Alaska Native communities.

Advancing genomics to improve health equity.

Health equity is the state in which everyone has fair and just opportunities to attain their highest level of health. The field of human genomics has fallen short in increasing health equity, largely because the diversity of the human population has been inadequately reflected among participants of genomics research. This lack of diversity leads to disparities that can have scientific and clinical consequences. Achieving health equity related to genomics will require greater effort in addressing inequities within the field. As part of the commitment of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) to advancing health equity, it convened experts in genomics and health equity research to make recommendations and performed a review of current literature to identify the landscape of gaps and opportunities at the interface between human genomics and health equity research. This Perspective describes these findings and examines health equity within the context of human genomics and genomic medicine.