Tribal, County Teamwork Keys Minnesota County's Vaccinations

MAHNOMEN, Minn. (AP) -- Authorities say the only Minnesota county located entirely within the borders of a Native American reservation has been vaccinating at rates that far surpass most other counties in the state.

Mahnomen County is located in the northwestern part of the state, about an hour’s drive away from the Fargo, North Dakota, and Moorhead, Minnesota metropolitan area.

Reports say that as of this past week, 85 percent of people 65 and older in the county have been vaccinated. Public health leaders at the White Earth Nation and Mahnomen County credit that high vaccination rate to close collaboration between the tribe and the county.

The tribe, which is a sovereign nation, decided that both Native and non-Native residents should be eligible for shots.