We use @ipums ATUS data to test whether Blacks have greater number of contacts compared to other racial/ethnic groups. We wanted to see if diff in number of contacts might contribute to the racial disparities in #COVID19 hospitalization rates that have been documented.
1/n

To our ( @aparna_ramen @SwansonRobles) surprise, Non-Hispanic Blacks had the lowest number of household member contacts and shortest duration of social contacts with household members when compared to other groups. #COVID19 2/n

Non-Hispanic Blacks also had the shortest duration of social contacts when we pooled data from all locations. ( @ipums ATUS data does not let us analyze # of contacts outside the home)
3/n

This means that the number and duration of social contacts are not likely responsible for #COVID19 black-white racial disparities; however types of contacts may matter.
4/n @minnpop @ipums #timeuse

Future work should take a look at racial/ethnic differences in occupation and industry which might lead to higher-risk contacts for Non-Hispanic Blacks. See this article featuring @Tiffany_L_Green for some insight. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/a-no-win-situation-expert-weighs-in-on-covid-19-racial-disparities
5/n

We will be updating our working paper with all of these results and much more soon. http://www.audreydorelien.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/ATUS_social_contact_latest.pdf
6/n