The Navajo Nation reported 69 new cases of COVID-19 on Monday, bringing the total to 4,071, according to a joint press release from the Native American territory’s president and vice president.
There were no coronavirus-linked fatalities reported Monday, leaving the Navajo Nation’s death toll at 142.
As the largest American Indian reservation in the country, the Navajo Nation is home to more than 356,000 people and covers some 25,000 square miles in the United States, spanning across parts of Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. The territory is approximately the size of the state of West Virginia.
The Navajo Department of Health has conducted more than 25,000 COVID-19 tests.
“The Navajo Nation is testing our citizens at a greater rate per capita than any state in the entire country and that’s a major reason why we have high numbers of positive cases,” Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez said in a statement Monday night. “The Navajo Nation must continue to work together with local, state, and federal partners to stop the spread of COVID-19 by staying home, washing hands, staying at least six-feet apart from others, and by wearing proper personal protection, such as face masks when in public.”
