Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

December 15, 2020

Understanding Drivers of COVID-19 Racial Disparities: A Population-Level Analysis of COVID-19 Testing among Black and White Populations

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Missouri Department of Health data show that Black populations in the St. Louis and Kansas City regions had lower COVID-19 testing rates per diagnosed cases compared to white populations consistently throughout the pandemic. During March to June 2020, zip codes in the lowest quartile of testing rates, which had higher proportions of Black, uninsured, and lower-income residents, accounted for only 12% of all tests in the St. Louis and 9% of all tests in Kansas City, despite accounting for 25% of all cases in both regions. Black individuals had consistently lower rates of COVID-19 tests per case compared to their white peers residing in the same zip code.

Mody et al. (Dec 14, 2020). Understanding Drivers of COVID-19 Racial Disparities: A Population-Level Analysis of COVID-19 Testing among Black and White Populations. Clinical Infectious Diseases. https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciaa1848