Whether you are African-American or Asian, the United States government now wants coronavirus lab results also to identify race on its details. Starting today, June 4, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will be requiring all COVID-19 test results to include a person's info such as age, sex, zip code, race, and ethnicity. This came after studies show that communities of color have more chances of acquiring the virus than other races.
The U.S. to identify race in COVID-19 lab results
Coronavirus Update: Whether Black or Asian, the U.S. Wants to Know Your COVID-19 Lab Results
For the first time in history, the Trump administration will include race and ethnicity as part of the survey in all COVID-19 test results, ABC News reported.
According to the report, starting on Aug. 1, the U.S. announces that all COVID-19 lab results in the country will be required to include a person's race when taking any swab tests on patients.
Robert Redfield, director of the CDC, said that there had been a "disparity among communities" when it comes to the lab testing results in America.
The agency, unfortunately, only has 42% of access to race and ethnicity when recording lab results. Within those cases, 22% was recorded on the Black community, while almost 33% corresponds to Latino. Since the race data being transmitted to CDC was only almost half in all results, there is a clear lack of hard data among this info.
"One problem that epidemiologists, in particular, have seen with all of this new lab testing site data (pharmacies, drive-throughs, non-traditional lab settings) is incomplete data," Scott Becker of the Association of Public Health Laboratories wrote in an email to NPR. "The data guidance issued today will aid state and local public health officials to better do their job."
Minorities have higher risks in acquiring coronavirus
Coronavirus Update: Whether Black or Asian, the U.S. Wants to Know Your COVID-19 Lab Results
Black and other ethnic minorities living in America were found to be more prone to acquiring coronavirus than White Americans.
Studies show that structural racism among these groups left these populations to lower the healthcare system, resulting in fewer chances for COVID-19 tests.
Health officials also say that underlying conditions like asthma and diabetes being more prominent in dark-colored skin people also trigger the faster transmission of the virus.
These people also commonly worked for jobs that require them to expose to people such as personal services, staffing nursing homes, and more.
"The effects of COVID-19 on the health of racial and ethnic minority groups are still emerging," the CDC wrote to Congress. "However, current data suggest a disproportionate burden of illness and death among racial and ethnic minority groups. I have every intent to get that data."
