National Council of Urban Indian Health
1 Massachusetts Avenue NW
Suite 800-D
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: 202.544.0344
Mortality data is a fundamental tool in public health practice, and helps set priorities at the local, state, and national level. Yet American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people remain poorly represented in this data – often because their race has been “misclassified” on their death certificate.
Racial misclassification of AI/AN people endangers lives. It marginalizes AI/AN communities and leaves the organizations that serve them without sufficient data to make decisions and fund the services they provide.
NCUIH has produced a series of products on this topic with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), including:
- Reports describing this issue
- A series of one pagers stakeholders can use to prevent misclassification in mortality data
- A tribal resource guide that funeral directors and community members can use to access burial assistance after a community member’s death
Explore NCUIH Resources
Reports
Fact Sheets
Tribal Burial Assistance Guide
Other Resources:
- National Center for Health Statistics – a center at the CDC which manages the National Vital Statistics System, monitors the validity of race Hispanic-origin reporting on death certificates, and provides handbooks and guides for funeral directors.
This website was supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award (NOFO OT18-1802, titled Strengthening Public Health Systems and Services through National Partnerships to Improve and Protect the Nation’s Health) funded by CDC/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CDC/HHS, or the U.S. Government.