In the early days of the pandemic, in-person contact suddenly became risky, but human interactions for business, education, medical, and social reasons remained as important as ever. That fact explains why now, more than a year later, we all have more experience than most of us would like with platforms like Zoom. 

As COVID slowly recedes, it’s increasingly clear that health care in Indian Country has been severely stressed. The system had a unique set of challenges before — and during — the crisis, which in many communities has highlighted persistent inequalities resulting from insufficient funding and resources.