1/ In @OWHnews @OWHopinion this morning, @DrJRMarcelin & I call for racial/ethnic #COVID19 data reporting in Nebraska.

We are currently the ONLY state reporting ZERO state-level demographics. Short thread about why this is a #HealthEquity nightmare

https://www.omaha.com/opinion/midlands-voices-nebraska-needs-virus-related-data-by-ethnic-racial-background/article_8e662974-2825-5278-b94f-9c5f4a39598f.html

2/ @AmerMedicalAssn's Center for Health Equity has followed state demographic reporting. 46 states currently report race/ethnicity, 49 report age, and 48 report gender.

This is a map on which #GoBigRed #GBR has a less than ideal meaning for Nebraska.

https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/health-equity/states-tracking-covid-19-race-and-ethnicity-data

3/ Being a flyover state doesn't render us immune to inequity. Data from Douglas County (includes most of Omaha) shows disproportionate case incidence among Hispanic, Black, and Asian patients despite our county being ~70% non-Hispanic & White...

https://dogis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/21bec056a9a6449abcca89a329868fd6

4/ ...and in Lancaster County (includes Lincoln, NE) data reported yesterday in @OWHNews revealed a MASSIVE disparity among the county's Asian population (which includes a number of Karen, Nepali, and Vietnamese immigrant/refugee groups).

https://www.omaha.com/livewellnebraska/nebraska-coronavirus-cases-pass-9-000-lincoln-data-show-racial-disparity/article_dffee0da-c800-57f9-9b21-3802d1469eb1.html

5/ Nebraska is among the highest per capita infection rates in the COUNTRY due to recent outbreaks in Hall, Dawson, and Dakota County at rural meatpacking plants -- and we know that these plants employ many Latino, Sudanese, Somali, Vietnamese immigrants. https://twitter.com/MaddowBlog/status/1258588355450867712?s=20

6/ If we want to address rural & urban health inequities, we need to be data-driven. Dr. Nancy Krieger, @gregggonsalves, @DrMaryTBassett, @BillHanage, & @hmkyale highlighted weeks ago in @HealthAffairs that data collection is a CRUCIAL first step.

https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20200414.238084/full/

7/ At the end of the day, disparities researchers & health care professionals like @DrJRMarcelin are working tirelessly to ensure we care for our most vulnerable neighbors.

We're counting on our elected officials to do the same & keep #NebraskaStrong for all of us.