Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

July 29, 2020

Comparison of Weighted and Unweighted Population Data to Assess Inequities in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Deaths by Race/Ethnicity Reported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Category:

Topic:

  • Cowger et al. compared the percentage distribution of COVID-19 deaths in the US by race/ethnicity between the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics–weighted population and the unweighted US Census population and found that the weighting approach affects the relative mortality burden by race/ethnicity. In an analysis using the unweighted US Census data, Black individuals were the most overrepresented among COVID-19 deaths, accounting for an excess in absolute COVID-19 mortality of 10%, whereas white individuals were underrepresented (−8%). In contrast, an analysis with the CDC weighted data showed that white individuals were most overrepresented (11%) and Black individuals were less overrepresented (4%). The different approaches also yielded discrepancies among Latinx (−2% vs −10%) and Asian (0.1% vs −6%) individuals. 
  • The authors urged the CDC to publish data stratified by age, gender, education, and ZIP code characteristics instead of geographical distribution of racial groups to provide unbiased estimates of racial/ethnic disparities. 

Cowger et al. (July 28, 2020). Comparison of Weighted and Unweighted Population Data to Assess Inequities in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Deaths by Race/Ethnicity Reported by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. JAMA Network Open. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.16933