Eastern Cherokee gaming payments linked to better health

Tuesday, June 1, 2010  

A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found a link between per capita payments and improved health and well-being among the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians of North Carolina.

The study compared tribal youth who received a share of gaming revenues to non-tribal youth who didn't. It found that 14 percent of Cherokee youth developed a problem with alcohol in adulthood, compared to 24 percent of non-Cherokees.

About 10 percent of Cherokee youth reported a problem with marijuana as adults . The rate was 16 percent among non-Cherokees.

The study also found that tribal members who received payments when they were younger were better off than those who didn't receive payments until they were already in adulthood. Younger Cherokees had lower rates of substance abuse and psychiatric disorders, were less likely to be in trouble with the law and had higher levels of education.

Tribal members began receiving a share of revenues from the Harrah's Cherokee Hotel and Casino in 1996. The payments now run as high as $9,000 a year.

Get the Story:
Cherokee casino payments may deter alcohol, drug use among young members (The Asheville Citizen-Times 6/1)

Get the Study:
Association of Family Income Supplements in Adolescence With Development of Psychiatric and Substance Use Disorders in Adulthood Among an American Indian Population (JAMA Vol. 303 No. 19, May 19, 2010)
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Related Stories:
Study ties Eastern Cherokee health to per capita payments (5/18)