According to the Census Bureau, nearly one in three Native Americans lives in poverty. The number of Indian families below the poverty line is nearly three times the national average. One-half of all Indian households headed by a female live in poverty. One-half of the Indian children under the age of six living on reservations live in poverty. Poverty in Indian country is a persistent, everyday reality.
Poor health is the twin sister of poverty.
Tuberculosis strikes down Native Americans at four times the national mortality rate for this disease. The Indian mortality rate for diabetes exceeds the national average by 139 percent. Indians are four times more likely to die from alcoholism than are other Americans. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome rates among Native Americans are six times the national average. In some Indian communities, reported cases indicate that child abuse has victimized as many as one-fourth of the children.