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A thread on data collection for the coronavirus and how we are currently failing to capture valuable demographic data in MD that would help us create more targeted solutions for minority communities, especially for the residents of MD that are black. 1/ https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/editorial/bs-ed-0403-coronavirus-race-disparity-20200403-npngxilobfa2hm3aishcwuj6ui-story.html
In other states, we are seeing the coronavirus disproportionately affect black people. In Illinois, 14.6% of the state’s population is black, yet the state is reporting that 30.8% of #COVIDー19 patients and 38.6% of people who have died are black. 2/
http://www.dph.illinois.gov/covid19/covid19-statistics
http://www.dph.illinois.gov/covid19/covid19-statistics
In Michigan, it‘s even worse. Though black people make up 14.1% of the Michigan population, they are accounting for more than 1/3 of Michigan's #COVIDー19 cases and 40% of Michigan's recorded deaths. 3/ https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2020/04/02/black-people-make-up-12-of-michigans-population-and-at-least-40-of-its-coronavirus-deaths
To be fair, some of these states have black-majority cities, such as Detroit which has a population that is ~80% black. However, this does not provide sufficient explanation for the disparities in the data, nor does it change the need for collecting demographic data. 4/
There are other reasons that explain why we are seeing these disparities, and each of them help solidify why it is crucial for MD to immediately start tracking and publicizing coronavirus demographic data:
A. Poverty
B. Mistrust in medicine
C. Health disparities
5/
A. Poverty
B. Mistrust in medicine
C. Health disparities
5/
A. Poverty. ~21% of Black people fell below the poverty line in 2018. Not only will many black people be working the lower-wage essential jobs, but they will also be on public transit and in closer living quarters, all of which place them at risk. 6/
https://talkpoverty.org/basics/
B. Mistrust in medicine. Because there is racial bias baked into our nation’s healthcare system as a result of historical and systemic racism (e.g., justification for slavery, the Tuskegee experiment), black people tend to not trust healthcare workers. 7/ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/13/upshot/race-and-medicine-the-harm-that-comes-from-mistrust.html
C. Health disparities. For almost every medical condition identified by the CDC as a condition that makes someone high-risk for #COVID19 — asthma, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, HIV/AIDs — black people suffer higher rates of them. 8/
https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/browse.aspx?lvl=3&lvlid=61
https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/browse.aspx?lvl=3&lvlid=61
To sum these up, lower-income black MD residents will be at a higher risk to contract the virus, more likely to wait longer than others to seek treatment because of distrust in the health system, and more susceptible to death because of higher rates of underlying conditions. 9/
The combination of these factors creates a unique and pressing problem for our government leaders who are attempting to formulate solutions for and provide accurate messaging to specific constituents. This is a tragedy that can be averted, but we have to act now. 10/
Once the data is available, we’re no longer driving blind. Public servants and community leaders can pinpoint people that may suffer more from the virus and direct targeted messaging towards them. We can create better solutions to stop the spread in different communities. 11/
It’s clear it was a mistake to not track demographic data from the start. However, leaders like @CharlesSydnor3d and members of the @BlackCaucusMD are pushing @GovLarryHogan to collect and share this data immediately. We must add pressure by joining them with our voices. 12/
@GovLarryHogan @riccimike when will we have publicly available demographic data for coronavirus cases and deaths? Certain communities will be disproportionately affected unless we publicly release this data and begin crafting targeted solutions. We need this to happen now. 13/
All of this is without mentioning the lack of access to healthcare, the widely shared misinformation claiming that black people wouldn’t be infected, and I’m sure a dozen other reasons that I’m unaware of because of the limit to my research & knowledge and my being white. 14/
Retweet this thread to call on @GovLarryHogan to capture and share comprehensive demographic data. Looking to you @ACLU_MD! /end
