The Disproportionate Impact of COVID-19 on Racial and Ethnic Minorities in the United States

TLDR

COVID‑19 has disproportionately harmed racial and ethnic minorities, with higher death rates driven by biomedical vulnerabilities, chronic conditions, limited healthcare access, and socially determined living and working conditions that expose long‑standing structural inequities. Clinicians should collaborate with patients and communities to mitigate short‑term COVID‑19 disparities and push for structural reforms.

Abstract

Abstract The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has disproportionately affected racial and ethnic minority groups, with high rates of death in African American, Native American, and LatinX communities. Although the mechanisms of these disparities are being investigated, they can be conceived as arising from biomedical factors as well as social determinants of health. Minority groups are disproportionately affected by chronic medical conditions and lower access to healthcare that may portend worse COVID-19 outcomes. Furthermore, minority communities are more likely to experience living and working conditions that predispose them to worse outcomes. Underpinning these disparities are long-standing structural and societal factors that the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed. Clinicians can partner with patients and communities to reduce the short-term impact of COVID-19 disparities while advocating for structural change.