The Effects of COVID-19 on Underserved Communities

ANCHAL KUMAR – As the COVID-19 pandemic tears through the country, certain communities shoulder the worst of it all. Underserved populations, specifically those comprised of minority groups such as African Americans and Hispanics/Latinos, have limited access to healthcare and social services which would provide them with the adequate and necessary care that they need. 

Communities made up of these minority groups face societal and cultural barriers which prevent them from equal access to resources. Furthermore, these communities are more likely to have underlying medical conditions which can increase the risks of contracting COVID-19. Medical conditions which are most prevalent in hospitalizations due to COVID-19 include diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, smoking, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Alcendor 2020). Not only are minority populations at a higher risk of these diseases due to socioeconomic barriers, they are also more likely to go longer without diagnosing these conditions which only increases the risk associated with COVID-19. Research has also found that the mortality rate of COVID-19 was higher among African Americans and Hispanics/Latinos as opposed to non-Hispanic Whites belonging to the same communities (Alcendor 2020). 

The disparities in the number of cases in these communities can be looked at in Chicago, where African Americans make up 30% of the population while making up 50% of the number of COVID-19 cases and 70% of COVID-19 fatalities. An article looking at the racial disparities associated with the pandemic states that the death rate for counties made up of a majority of African Americans were six times higher than the rate of those made up of mostly white Americans. 

While social determinants of health definitely play a role in this disparity, comorbidities also determine risk levels. Type 2 diabetes is more prevalent in adult and adolescent minority populations, and COVID-19 patients with diabetes are at a much higher risk of having clinical complications which could lead to higher death rates. Another complicating, underlying condition is hypertension, which has the highest prevalence in African American adults as opposed to non-Hispanic Whites. Not only is hypertension most prevalent in minority populations, but it is also the most common comorbidity diagnosed with COVID-19. Patients with hypertension or diabetes are more likely to develop acute respiratory distress syndrome. Thus, African American and Hispanics/Latinos are more likely to be diagnosed with comorbidities and face the widespread disparities in the healthcare system. 

COVID-19 disproportionately affects minority populations in underserved communities due to socioeconomic barriers and a lack of access to necessary resources. In order to properly combat COVID-19, and the healthcare inequalities in general, in these areas, it is essential to change public policies. An increase in funding to support healthcare equality initiatives, adequate resources and supplies for essential workers, increase in transportation to and from healthcare facilities, and more available knowledge on how to better access all of the resources and the benefits associated with them would all be viable methods of decreasing the fatal healthcare inequality that persists in our nation. 

Copy Editor: Halle Mastronardo