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Today @joebiden launched discussions on putting COVID to rest and literally healing America. First step is fighting COVID. The disease has had a horrible racially disparate outcome. But, it isn't for the reasons you think. And, here elections will matter.
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The @JoeBiden gets to pick a new Secretary of Labor and a new Assistant Secretary under them to serve as head of OSHA. That is crucial, because literally, Black people have been dying from and at work. The lack of OSHA regulations is literally killing Black workers. /2
The CDC did a study in March too few people paid attention to. It examined people hospitalized for COVID, it looked at issues of high-risk pre-existing health issues and race. Here is the link: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6918e1.htm?s_cid=mm6918e1_w
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The CDC study found:
Chronic lung disease was documented for 20.3% of patients
Asthma in 10.5% of patients
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in 5.2% of cases
NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BY AGE OR RACE
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Chronic lung disease was documented for 20.3% of patients
Asthma in 10.5% of patients
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in 5.2% of cases
NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES BY AGE OR RACE
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The CDC study found:
Severe obesity (BMI>40) present in 12.7% of patients
DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY BY RACE
Diabetes was documents in 39.7% of patients
BUT WAS NOT SIGNIGICANTLY MORE COMMON IN BLACK THAN NONBLACK PATIENTS
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Severe obesity (BMI>40) present in 12.7% of patients
DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY BY RACE
Diabetes was documents in 39.7% of patients
BUT WAS NOT SIGNIGICANTLY MORE COMMON IN BLACK THAN NONBLACK PATIENTS
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The CDC study found:
Cardiovascular disease was documentd in 25.6% of patients
PREVALENCE WAS SIMILAR IN BLACK AND NONBLACK PATIENTS
THE FREQUENCY OF Invasive Mechanical Ventilation AND FATALITY DID NOT DIFFER BY RACE
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Cardiovascular disease was documentd in 25.6% of patients
PREVALENCE WAS SIMILAR IN BLACK AND NONBLACK PATIENTS
THE FREQUENCY OF Invasive Mechanical Ventilation AND FATALITY DID NOT DIFFER BY RACE
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So, if the CDC study of hospitalizations from COVID did not find Black patients were more likely to have co-morbidity factors to complicate their cases, and were not more likely to go on ventilation and were not more likely to die, why are Blacks dying at a higher rate?
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Here is the sample the CDC studied:
305 patients from 7 hospitals in metropolitan Atlanta and one community hospital in southern Georgia >age 18 with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 Median Age 60
during March 1 – March 30, 2020
83.2% were Black (compared to 47% of all patients)
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305 patients from 7 hospitals in metropolitan Atlanta and one community hospital in southern Georgia >age 18 with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 Median Age 60
during March 1 – March 30, 2020
83.2% were Black (compared to 47% of all patients)
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The short of it is the CDC found that Blacks were not more likely to die from COVID because of pre-existing conditions, because Black patients were not more likely to have pre-existing conditions. They were more likely to die because they were a higher share of patients.
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In most states, while Blacks are a high share of COVID cases, they are a lower share of deaths compared to the share of cases
If Black deaths were an issue of Blacks surviving COVID, then at worst they would be the same share of COVID cases as they are of deaths
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If Black deaths were an issue of Blacks surviving COVID, then at worst they would be the same share of COVID cases as they are of deaths
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For Blacks and Latinos, COVID is a disease of the working age population. The majority of hospitalizations of confirmed COVID cases for Blacks and Latinos are working age people, while for whites, the cases are people over 65.
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And that is because Black and Latino workers are disproportionately the front-line workers who are not teleworking but keeping our economy moving with essential tasks. Thanks @ceprdc https://cepr.net/a-basic-demographic-profile-of-workers-in-frontline-industries/
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OSHA refused to put in place workplace safeguards to protect American workers, even fighting the @AFLCIO in court to double down it refusal to keep American workers safe from harm. This is why elections matter.
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OSHA is refusing to protect our front line workers like our nurses @NationalNurses Black and white nurses are equally likely to have been tested positive for COVID, but for Blacks, a disproportionate share of the Black workforce are nurses. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6915e6.htm?s_cid=mm6915e6_w
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And then there is meatpacking. OSHA could be keeping those workers safer @UFCW But, instead, Trump is busy letting lines be sped up and so prevent safe distancing for workers. And who are the meatpacking workers?
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Since Black meatpacking workers live mostly in the rural South, it is not surprising that OSHA's failures show in the Black rural death rate from COVID, as shown in this study from @CAPeconomy https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2020/10/28/492376/rural-america-forgotten-coronavirus-crisis/
These same occupational risks show in the UK. So, the same occupations that are dangerous for workers here in the US from COVID show there.
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Regrettably, similar racial patterns show in who does the risky frontline jobs in the UK, as in the US:
Thanks @TheIFS https://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/Are-some-ethnic-groups-more-vulnerable-to%20COVID-19-than-others-V2-IFS-Briefing-Note.pdf
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Thanks @TheIFS https://www.ifs.org.uk/uploads/Are-some-ethnic-groups-more-vulnerable-to%20COVID-19-than-others-V2-IFS-Briefing-Note.pdf
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So, sadly, with similar racial patterns to risky occupations from COVID, the UK has similar disparities by race in who is dying from COVID as we have here.
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In summary, there is too high a risk facing American workers from COVID. Our data by occupation is limited because OSHA is not doing its job to force reporting. But, what we know shows it is an equal risk to all workers. The disease does not show favoritism, only OSHA does.
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Elections matter. @JoeBiden kicked off the needed discussion to get America taking COVID seriously and tackling this virus so all Americans can be safe. His election will get us the OSHA we deserve to protect Americans.
