“Superseded the pandemic”: Black Mississippians discuss protesting, the intersections of Black Lives Matter and existing health disparities
July 26, 2020, Daily Journal, Danny McArthur – Black Mississippians were already reeling from representing over 50 percent of COVID-19 cases and deaths when George Floyd, a Black man from Mineapolis, Minnesota, was killed on May 25 when a police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes. The tragedy sparked a nationwide movement for Black Lives as each state protested, and thousands across Mississippi added their voices to the chorus with protests within their own regions. Black Mississippians who protested did so while knowing they were putting their lives at risk by doing so.
Millions Have Lost Health Insurance in Pandemic-Driven Recession
April 3, 2020, The New York Times, Reed Abelson and Margot Sanger-Katz – Using the hospital funds to pay for uninsured coronavirus patients could be a targeted way to pay for coronavirus care for the growing number of Americans who lack health insurance. But critics say it may not go to hospitals in the states hit the hardest so far and does little to address concerns over the millions of people now without coverage for medical care unrelated to the virus. Click here to view the story.
Long-Standing Racial And Income Disparities Seen Creeping Into COVID-19 Care
April 6, 2020, KHN, Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio – The new coronavirus doesn’t discriminate. But physicians in public health and on the front lines said they already can see the emergence of familiar patterns of racial and economic bias in the response to the pandemic. In one analysis, it appears doctors may be less likely to refer African Americans for testing when they show up for care with signs of infection. Click here to view the story.
In the poorest county, in America’s poorest state, a virus hits home: ‘Hunger is rampant’
April 6, 2020, The Guardian, Oliver Laughland – On the cracked country roads of Lexington, deep in the Mississippi delta, an empty yellow school bus drives slowly, making life-sustaining drop offs on the way. Here, in the poorest county, in America’s poorest state, the coronavirus has yet to ravage the jurisdiction with infection. There has been one recorded Covid-19 death in the county, Clinton Cobbins, Lexington’s first African American mayor. But even now the coronavirus still poses a serious threat to life. Click here to view the story.
As Coronavirus Spreads, Workers Could Lean On ACA Coverage Protection
April 3, 2020, KHN, Julie Rovner – Concerns about health care during the coronavirus pandemic are raising the profile of the federal Affordable Care Act, which can help those who have lost their jobs with an option to get insurance. Julie Rovner, Kaiser Health News’ chief Washington correspondent, talked to WBUR’s “Here & Now” host Jeremy Hobson on Friday about efforts to get the federal government to let people have a special enrollment period for coverage plans sold on the ACA marketplaces, as well as the effect massive job layoffs will have on Medicaid. Click here to view the story.