Mortality rates from all causes in Maoris in New Zealand and Native Americans have fallen substantially since the early 1970s. Comparable mortality rates for Australian Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders in 1990-1994 were at or above the rates observed 20 years ago in Maoris and Native Americans, being 1.9 times the rate in Maoris, 2.4 times the rate in Native Americans, and 3.2 times the rate for all Australians. Circulatory diseases, respiratory diseases, injuries and endocrine diseases (mostly diabetes) are responsible for almost 70% of these excess deaths. Mortality rate trends in indigenous populations in other countries suggest the feasibility of substantial and rapid reductions in mortality rates of Australia's indigenous people.