Coronavirus' Impact on Minority Communities

Floor Speech

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Mr. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Tri-Caucus' Special Order to highlight the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on communities of color. Our nation is currently overwhelmed by unprecedented numbers of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths. After more than eight months of suffering, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage our communities, creating incalculable pain, massive economic disruption, and immense strain on our public health system. As of this moment, more than 246,000 Americans have lost their lives from this deadly disease. More than eleven million have been infected, and nearly 70,000 are currently hospitalized with severe cases of COVID-19. While all Americans are suffering from this pandemic, communities of color are experiencing acute and disproportionate pain.

From the beginning of this pandemic, it was clear that the phrase ``when white America catches a cold, Black America gets pneumonia'' would be particularly true with COVID-19's devastating consequences. In fact, the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately harms Black and Brown communities with dramatically unequal infection rates, hospitalizations, and deaths. Specifically, Black people are three times more likely to become infected with COVID-19 than whites. Moreover, Black people die from COVID-19 at around twice the rate of white people. These aren't just statistics. They represent our friends, neighbors, and loved ones. They are people like my cousin who died from COVID-19 earlier this year, and so many others who are no longer with us.

Like past disease outbreaks and natural disasters, the COVID-19 pandemic lays bare the consequences of systemic injustices suffered by communities of color. Institutional racism, compounded by environmental and economic injustices, have resulted in severe health disparities for communities of color which make the COVID-19 pandemic so uniquely devastating. Despite the disproportionate harm the COVID-19 pandemic has caused among communities of color, many states still do not provide transparency regarding racial and ethnic demographic data for COVID-19 cases and deaths. For example, in my state of Indiana, the State only provides an aggregate breakdown of the racial and ethnic demographics for cases and deaths during the entire pandemic. This results in a profoundly incomplete picture of the disproportionate sickness, death, fear and tragedy this virus is inflicting on communities of color.

As Congress considers much-needed, additional measures to combat COVID-19 and provide relief for businesses, hospitals and workers, one thing is clear: Communities of color must receive substantial relief and support that matches the devastation they've suffered from this pandemic. In addition, states and public health departments must provide updated and daily demographic information, including a racial and ethnic breakdown, for the daily numbers of COVID-19 cases and deaths. This data transparency is essential to fully understand how the pandemic is affecting different communities and how we can best respond. With this data, we can better target our COVID-19 relief funds and support to ensure that communities of color get all the help we need to weather the storm of this pandemic and combat the underlying inequities in our health care system that this pandemic has exacerbated.

I am committed to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to act now and to act boldly to implement a national plan that will save lives from this terrible disease.

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