African-Americans Most Likely to Get COVID-19: Here Are Reasons Why

The novel coronavirus recognizes no borders or race. However, early data shows a grim picture: African Americans are more likely to die from COVID-19 than White Americans. 

Although with only some states and counties providing data on COVID-19 cases and outcomes by race, the statistics are disturbing -- nearly 3,300 of the 13,000 COVID-19 or 42 percent of the deaths are African-Americans, as reported by Associated Press. 

In Louisiana and Mississippi, 65 percent of known COVID-19 deaths are African-Americans. As of April 9, Illinois reports 28 percent of the 16,422 confirmed cases. Cases of death rates indicate that of the 528 deaths in the state, 43 percent are African-Americans. Even President Donald Trump and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government's top infectious disease expert, during a White House briefing admitted the higher death rate of African Americans. 

Why are African-Americans Most Vulnerable?

In an article published in Science News, African-Americans may be most vulnerable to COVID-19 for the following reasons: 

African-Americans have greater exposure to COVID-19. 

Each state-issued stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of COVID-19. However, the critical workforce, such as caregivers, nurse aides, cashiers, emergency dispatchers, sanitation workers, public transport workers, and public transit workers, which are mostly African-Americans, must continue working as they are part of the critical workforce. Such a workforce could not telecommute, compelling them to be in contact with the general public while others are at home in stay-at home-orders. 

They Use Public Transport Regularly

According to Pew Research,  34 percent of African-Americans living in urban areas use public transport regularly or weekly compared to 14 percent of white people. The continued use of public transport may have caused African-Americans to be more at risk of exposure from coronavirus. 

Many African- Americans live in places with increased risk of exposure 

Only 44 percent of African-Americans own their own home, a census data from January 2020 revealed. A family living in a crowded inner-city apartment could not possibly take an elevator alone, epidemiologist Martina Anto-Ocrah of the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York cited.

The legal segregation in schools and housing, discrimination in the labor market, and redlining, the denying of home loans to African-American neighborhoods have added to gaps the caused the African-Americans to struggle to move into neighborhoods that can better avoid exposure to the novel coronavirus.

As Robert Sampson, a sociologist at Harvard University, puts it, "All the ingredients are in place for there to be a sharp racial and class inequality to this [pandemic]."

Higher Incidence of Pre-existing Health Conditions due to poor living conditions 

Global statistics of COVID-19 show that patients with serious health problems such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease are most vulnerable to COVID-19. African-Americans, according to data from the American Heart Association say that over 40 percent have high blood pressure, and a higher rate of diabetes, as per American Diabetes Association data. This may occur because of exposure to air pollution, which is linked to chronic health problems such as asthma, obesity, cardiovascular disease. 

 Lower-income African-American neighborhoods have higher levels of lead, air pollution, and violence, according to a study done in April 2019 by Sampson and fellow Harvard sociologist Robert Manduca. 

Less Access to Health Care 

A report from the Century Foundation reveals that African-Americans are more likely to be uninsured. Those who are insured spend a lot on premium and out-of-pocket costs. Since 20 percent of African-Americans live in poverty, they were greatly affected by some state's decision not to expand Medicaid as part of the Affordable Care Act, which is linked to reduced death from cardiovascular disease.

More efforts must be done to communities that are especially vulnerable to improve their odds in coping with COVID-19, Sampson said. He further suggested looking at the map of COVID-19 deaths, identifying risk communities, target resources to them such as access to COVID-19 testing, distribution of masks, and deployment of mobile clinics.