(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) “The challenges I faced with COVID are nothing compared to what the families on the Navajo Nation are facing,” said Dr. Jackie Simonis, Aug. 1, 2020. Simonis contracted COVID-19 while working on the reservation. Simonis and her husband, who also is an emergency room doctor, spend two weeks of every month on the Hopi and Navajo nations. Simonis suffered mild symptoms and despite living in a small apartment on the reservation, did not give the virus to her husband.
Nate Carlisle has been a reporter at The Salt Lake Tribune since 2005.