Recent reports are showing how the
COVID-19 pandemic plays out along racial lines, continuing
to deprive communities of color of physical, mental and
emotional safety in this country. Here in Ohio, black
residents make up about 13 percent of the population yet, as
of April 13, represent 19 percent of the diagnosed cases of
COVID-19. Other states like Michigan, Illinois, and
Louisiana have reported even more staggering disparities,
especially in COVID-19-related deaths.
Through decisions about citizenship
and voting rights, to land and property ownership,
jurisdictions at all levels have influenced distribution of
advantage and disadvantage in American society. For example,
the HISTORY of restricted health care access and a
documented bias in treatment, medical abuse like the
Tuskegee Institute study and higher rates of environmental
stressors, have resulted in a population that
disproportionately suffers from chronic conditions and the
comorbidities that place them at higher risk of contracting
and dying from COVID-19.
For all of the guidance that has been
released in the name of slowing the spread of COVID-19, at
the outset, it was never acknowledged that a majority of
these action steps reflect privilege. The ability to protect
oneself and adhere to the guidance by public health
officials is a reach for many concentrated in economically
vulnerable neighborhoods. Nutrient dense food is limited;
the income to hoard food and supplies is limited; and for
housing insecure households, those with limited internet
access, or those without the healthcare centers or other
important information distribution organizations (such as
libraries), access to appropriate information is limited.
Now, we must move beyond merely calling out these
inequities. It is well-known in the public health field that
social determinants of health have an outsized influence on
health outcomes. For YWCA of Northwest Ohio, an
organization committed to eliminating racism and empowering
women, we believe that as a community, we must see with
renewed conviction why declaring racism as a public health
issue is the long- term policy response that can
outlast this particular moment, redress the wrongs of the
past, and shepherd us into a healthier, more equitable
future.
Because our nation’s legacy of
discrimination and preserved structural racism perpetuates
racial disparities, actions must be targeted to address the
specific needs of communities of color as we fight to reduce
the spread of COVID-19. Here are a few things we can do to
help:
·
Submit requests for COVID-19 hotlines to collect more
comprehensive data, requiring race and ethnicity data of
cases to be recorded, and increase transparency of
disparities when reporting out. Government should release
racial and ethnic breakdowns of confirmed COVID-19 cases and
deaths by county, ZIP code and Census tract.
·
Advocate for equitable access to testing and treatment, such
as locating testing centers in predominantly black
neighborhoods, or providing free, safe transportation to and
from testing and treatment, and access to community-based
primary care physicians.
·
Add racial and ethnic identities to the list of prioritized
testing qualifiers to better test and treat high-risk
populations and provide free health care for those who test
positive.
·
Request that high-volume subsidized housing buildings work
with local health providers to disseminate important
information to residents and create onsite clinic hours to
ensure mobility-restricted residents have access to medical
care.
·
Acknowledge and commend our health systems role with social
determinants to health. After all, we have the national
leaders in our community. Let’s walk along side of them as
WE confront these issues.
We believe the racial disparities in COVID-19 infections and
deaths are unacceptable. We invite our community’s
leadership to a conversation to declare racism as a public
health crisis, accept responsibility for the government’s
role in creating oppressive systems that marginalize black
and brown Americans, and proactively work to create a more
equitable community for all our residents.
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