Race and health

Ethnic group

Public health

Pathology

Sociology

Demography

Health care

Economics

Anthropology

Health equity

Disease

Population

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Economic growth

Infectious disease (medical specialty)

Medicine

Gerontology

Pandemic

Environmental health

Journal of General Internal Medicine

C oronavirus disease 19 is the condition caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-2-CoV-2) infections which is now prevalent in all 50 states with clustering of cases in major cities in New York, Michigan, California, and New Jersey.COVID-19 that was initially thought to be the great equalizer-no discrimination with who can become infected-now reveals patterns of disparities for low-income persons and racial and ethnic minority populations. Tis novel coronavirus which results in increased rates of respiratory failure and death among infected individuals 1, 2 is found to disproportionally affect those with comorbidities such as diabetes, heart disease, and asthma.These conditions are known to disproportionately affect minorities who are already impacted by health disparities.Even before COVID-19, health disparities were pervasive in the USA.We define disparities as differences in healthcare utilization and health outcomes among distinct social groups. 3merging data show that racial/ethnic minorities and those from the working class have worse health outcomes due to COVID-19.In Chicago, Blacks comprise 30% of the city's population but 70% of COVID-19 deaths.Based on our personal experience and data from our health system, COVID-19 is uncovering disparities embedded within our society.In this paper, we identify areas in which COVID-19 is exacerbating existing disparities and offer potential solutions to address these disparities.Structural barriers contributed to disparities in COVID-19 testing and diagnosis in the early weeks of the pandemic.One of the major issues with diagnosing COVID-19 is limited testing availability.Initially, testing was centralized and there were few testing sites.To control the number of patients presenting for tests, residents in New York were required to

COVID-19: Magnifying the Effect of Health Disparities