Spotlight

The reality of racial health disparities

For minority and rural communities, access to quality healthcare is a struggle that was only worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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By
Abbey Slattery
, WRAL Digital Solutions
This article was written for our sponsor, N.C. Justice Health Advocacy Project.

While diseases and illnesses affect all populations, data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that racial and ethnic minority groups suffer from higher rates of health issues, including diabetes, hypertension, obesity, asthma and heart disease.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, that disparity has continued, especially in rural communities with higher comorbidity rates.

"There was a disparity as far as access to COVID testing and vaccines. The people who had the hardest time accessing quality services were black folks and poor people," said Reuben Blackwell, CEO of OIC in Rocky Mount, a nonprofit that provides medical access and education. "We chose to set up testing sites in places that were in close proximity to where black people live, as well as make sure that we employed people from these communities."

Through the work at OIC, Blackwell and his team were able to make COVID testing and vaccines more accessible to predominantly black communities. By recognizing that many people in these communities didn't have access to the Internet to book appointments or were too far away from other sites to qualify for the "first come, first serve" offerings, they instead connected with community organizations like churches in order to get the word out.

Within six to seven weeks of operation, they were able to serve over 7,000 people — but services like those provided by OIC are not usually the norm for these communities, even though they're no less in need than others.

In fact, for people in marginalized communities who contract COVID-19, there's a greater risk for hospitalization since they typically have a higher number of high-risk comorbidities.

"A black person who's poor might be 30 years old, but their health status might say they're 70, because they have diabetes, hypertension, asthma and a host of other issues that go along with that," said Blackwell. "Black women die at a higher rate from breast cancer than other populations of women and other ethnic groups. OIC worked together with the City of Rocky Mount and investors to create an imaging center in our community and our neighborhood. We partnered with the hospital, we partnered with Susan G. Komen and we've reached out to our community in the way that we know how to do that. And so now we're able to offer state-of-the-art breast imaging in their neighborhoods."

"Our approach is that you've got to bring care into the community," said Blackwell. "You have to find ways to get the community to the resources and start the conversation."

While OIC is doing important work in Rocky Mount, there are still many minority and poor communities across the country that are in need of increased access to and quality of health care.

Since the state legislature has yet to expand Medicaid and increase access to affordable health care, communities of color are disproportionately affected by the lack of aid. Estimates indicate that half of the people who would be able to afford seeing a doctor through the expansion of Medicaid are people of color.

"Medicaid expansion is a key racial justice issue that not only connects people of color to physical therapy and nurses, but makes sure that people of color can access care for mental health or substance use disorders," said Hyun Namkoong, policy advocate with the N.C. Justice Center. "More than 70% of people in our state prisons need long-term treatment for substance use disorder, but only 2% of them will be able to access care and treatment upon release."

"Making sure people can get the care they need makes everyone safer and healthier," she finished.

For Blackwell, supporting and advocating for the health and wellness of minorities in the community is beneficial to the community as a whole — and he hopes that the work they're doing in Rocky Mount can serve as an example to others of the benefits of doing so.

"Something that everyone should understand is that health status is not contained in a neighborhood, because people are mobile — they have to be in close contact with other people. Part of the reason the pandemic was so powerful was because everyone had to be treated, because you never know who could be infected," said Blackwell. "If we learn the lesson of inclusion and equity that we learn from COVID, and apply it to diabetes, apply it to food security, apply it to every other arena, we will find that almost all of society can function better and will have a better quality of life."

"When people are treated well, when they look well, when they can participate in their own future and their own development? Then you find stability, prosperity, and peace."

This article was written for our sponsor, N.C. Justice Health Advocacy Project.

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