Almost a year has passed since the first COVID-19 lockdown started. Every day that passes brings hope for the next as new vaccines are approved by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and distributed nationwide. However, we must not forget the 500,000+ lives lost to the virus, a disproportionate amount of those victims being people of color, and how this inequity alters the distribution of the vaccine.
The racial disparity between who is and is not getting COVID-19 is prevalent across the entire country. According to data gathered by the New York Times from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Latino and African Americans in the United States are almost three times more likely to contract COVID-19 than white people. Additionally, Latino and African Americans are twice as likely to die from the virus as white people. Native people are affected more frequently than white people in states like Arizona, and Asian people are roughly 1.3 times more likely to get the virus than white people are. This likelihood of being exposed may be attributed to using public transportation, working a frontline job that can not be worked from home, and living in small living spaces or multigenerational homes, according to experts.
These issues are also especially prevalent in areas with high costs of living because working-class residents are more likely to inhabit smaller living spaces that house more people. The ability to safely work from home is a privilege that many United States residents do not have. Even if someone suspects they might have come in contact with the virus, it can often be difficult to get time off, especially for those who cannot afford to miss work for long periods of time (nytimes.com). However, the CDC is missing data since the collection process differs from state to state,, so there are still many unknowns about the racial and ethnic backgrounds of those who have tested positive, as well as the specific counties they reside in (nytimes.com).
At the beginning of this year, President Biden announced plans to address this disparity by establishing the COVID-19 Health Equity Task force, increasing data collection and reporting for high risk groups; ensuring equitable access to critical COVID-19 PPE, tests, therapies, and vaccines; expanding access to high quality health care; expanding the clinical and public health workforce; strengthening the social service safety net to address unmet basic needs, and supporting communities most at-risk for COVID-19. Currently, there are efforts being made to expand the data infrastructure so that more comprehensive data will be collected about those who test positive, which will be useful when distributing vaccines. The President’s plan also includes a goal for the CDC to update the public health guidance for high-risk residents in order to minimize the spread of the virus (whitehouse.gov).
Hopefully, as more people in the United States receive vaccinations, President Biden will keep the promises that he made in January. No one group is more important than another, and it is vital that these disparities should be eliminated before they grow even more. With such a great toll taken on various minority groups, it is essential that equity is prioritized when distributing the vaccine for COVID-19. Without working to resolve this terrible problem, we will not be able to properly heal and rebuild as small communities or as a country.
