Following Health Inequities Roundtable, Senator Hassan Pushes for Provisions to Address Racial Disparities in Health Outcomes in Next COVID-19 Relief Package

Press Release

U.S Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) today urged Congressional leadership to address the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on communities of color in the next COVID-19 response package. The Senator's outreach follows a discussion she held recently with a group of predominately Black and Latina public health leaders in New Hampshire about racial disparities in health care outcomes.

"Earlier this month, I spoke with a group of predominately Black and Latina public health leaders in my state about these issues," Senator Hassan wrote in the letter. "In New Hampshire, racial or ethnic minorities make up about 10 percent of the state's population, but account for 25 percent of positive COVID-19 cases, and 21 percent of hospitalizations; nationwide, the age-adjusted COVID-19 death rate is 3.7 times higher for Black Americans than for white Americans. The New Hampshire public health leaders I spoke with emphasized that while these disparities have existed in the United States for centuries, the COVID-19 pandemic has further illuminated the structural racism and implicit bias within health care and federal programs."

Senator Hassan continued, "These inequities have limited access to high-quality health care for communities of color, resulting in comparatively poor health outcomes. The social determinants of health are elaborate social structures and economic systems that are responsible for the majority of health inequities. Communities of color have faced heightened challenges during the pandemic in part due to housing insecurity, high unemployment, lack of child care, working in essential and high-risk jobs, and lack of access to high-quality health care."

In her letter, the Senator requests that a number of provisions be included in the next COVID-19 response package to help address the drastic health inequities demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the country's health care system more broadly. This includes appropriate funding to help support Community Health Workers, who are a critical tool for outreach to racial and ethnic minorities, non-English speaking individuals, and other underserved communities, providing access to resources, accurate information, and quality health care in a culturally appropriate manner. More funding for Community-based Health Workers is an issue that Senator Hassan heard about specifically from a participant during the roundtable on racial disparities in health care outcomes.

Senator Hassan concluded her letter by writing, "As we continue our work toward a bipartisan agreement on legislation to provide relief during the COVID-19 pandemic, I am hopeful that we can use this opportunity to provide immediate relief to communities of color, and begin to address the longstanding inequities in our health care system that I hear about from my constituents, and that I am sure you are hearing about from your constituents as well."

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