A new study of the "Eight Americas" includes data on "America 5" -- American Indians who live on or near reservations in the West.

According to the study, published in the online journal PLoS Medicine, Indians in the West have the lowest per capita income of all racial and ethnic groups. America 5 has "very high rates" of alcohol-related deaths, such as traffic accidents and cirrhosis of the liver, and high rates of diabetes-related deaths.

The lowest life expectancy rate was seen among Indian males in Bennett, Jackson, Mellette, Shannon, Todd, and Washabaugh counties in South Dakota. They only lived an average of 59 years, according to the study.

America 5 also had the lowest rate of insurance coverage, the researchers said. The U.S. Census Bureau reported the same finding earlier this month.

Get the Story:
Life expectancy sags on S.D. reservations (AP 9/12)
Wide Gaps Found In Mortality Rates Among U.S. Groups (The Washington Post 9/12)
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Get the Study:
Eight Americas: Investigating Mortality Disparities across Races, Counties, and Race-Counties in the United States (PLoS Medicine September 2006)

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