Structurally vulnerable neighbourhood environments and racial/ethnic COVID-19 inequities

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ABSTRACT

Preliminary evidence indicates that the experience of the novel coronavirus is not shared equally across geographic areas. Findings in the United States suggest that the burden of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality may be hardest felt in disadvantaged and racially segregated places. Deprived neighbourhoods are disproportionately populated by people of colour, the same populations that are becoming sicker and dying more often from COVID-19. This commentary examines how structurally vulnerable neighbourhoods contribute to racial/ethnic inequities in SARS-COV-2 exposure and COVID-19 morbidity and mortality and considers opportunities to intervene through place-based initiatives and the implementation of a Health in All Policies strategy.

Video Abstract

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© Rachel L. Berkowitz 2021. Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

KEYWORDS:

• Neighbourhoods
• racial/ethnic health inequities
• COVID-19

Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the inspiration provided by the following scholars through public presentations about structural racism and COVID-19 at the University of California, Berkeley: Dr. Amani Allen, Dr. Jason Corburn, Dr. Denise Herd, Dr. Nancy Krieger, Dr. Cassie Marshall, Dr. Corinne Riddell, Dr. Rachel Morello-Frosch, and Dr. Osagie Obasogie. We would also like to thank Elleni Hailu, MPH, for her thought partnership.

Disclosure statement

We have no financial interest or benefit related to this work to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported in part by The Health Equity and Implementation Science Postdoctoral Research Fellowship with University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health and the Sutter Health Center for Health Systems Research; and the NIH-NHLBI under Grant 1F31HL151284-01A1.

Notes on contributors

Rachel L. Berkowitz

Rachel L. Berkowitz is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow. Her work focuses on neighbourhood quality, racial/ethnic health inequities, patient-centered healthcare, and place-based community-driven development.

Xing Gao

Xing Gao is a doctoral student. Her research centers around the place-effect on health for communities of colour and geospatial manifestation of structural racism.

Eli K. Michaels

Eli K. Michaels is a doctoral candidate. She is interested in novel approaches to measuring racism at multiple social levels and examining associations with chronic disease progression across the life course.

Mahasin S. Mujahid

Mahasin S. Mujahid is the Chancellor’s Professor of Public Health and an Associate Professor of Epidemiology. Her research is devoted to examining neighbourhood health effects, cardiovascular health disparities, and racial/ethnic health inequities over the life course.