We learned this week that children from racial and ethnic minorities are much more likely to die from COVID-19 than white children—yet another troubling sign of the racial disparities in health care. We have some ideas on what to do about it.
COVID-19 disparities by the numbers: Hispanic, Black, American Indian, Alaska Native, and Asian or Pacific Islander children have accounted for 75% of deaths under the age of 21, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
And it’s not just COVID-19 we need to worry about. While cancer death rates have been falling overall, Black Americans still face the highest risk, and have had the highest cancer death rate for 40 years, reports Axios.
As just one example, African American men and women face a greater risk of dying from prostate cancer (111%) and breast cancer (39%), respectively, compared to white men and women, according to a new report from the American Association for Cancer Research.
So, what can we do? For starters, we need to “build bridges in the African American community,” wrote BIO’s Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath in Nature Biotech. “To make sure the treatments for COVID-19 and other illnesses are safe and effective on members of minority and vulnerable populations, it is important to have their participation in clinical trials. So we need to build confidence, have an open and honest dialogue about the past, and work with local community leaders who can be that trusted voice.”
To work towards this goal, we launched the BIOEquality Agenda, a national effort to focus on health equity, investment in current and future researchers, and expanded opportunities for women and other underrepresented populations.
Dr. Michelle’s Diagnosis: At this galvanizing moment of national awakening, BIO is challenging our industry and its members to walk the talk of racial equity in hiring and promotions, clinical trial enrollment, and the bioeconomy. We believe the biotech industry can not only save lives, but also advance equal opportunity and social justice by creating more entry points for minority scientists and more advancement into leadership positions. We also have an obligation to make sure our transformative scientific breakthroughs are accessible and affordable to underrepresented communities. – BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath
More Health Care News:
Bloomberg: Vaccine leaders make trial plans public in transparency push
“Makers of the leading coronavirus vaccine candidates [including Moderna and Pfizer] disclosed detailed information about their pivotal late-stage clinical trials and how they plan to gauge their shots’ safety and effectiveness.”
Newsy: Who gets the COVID-19 vaccine first?
The decision on who will get the vaccine first is actually right now under very critical discussion within the CDC and its advisory committee on immunization practices,” said Phyllis Arthur, BIO’s VP of Infectious Disease and Diagnostics Policy.
The Wall Street Journal (Opinion): Trump and future cancer cures
“Immunomedics is a cautionary tale about drug price controls,” says the editorial board. (ICYMI, learn more about Trump’s drug pricing executive order.)
