UK report: Racism means minorities harder hit by virus

A new study by Public Health England has confirmed that historic racism and social inequalities are contributing factors that increase risk of black, Asian and mirity communities contracting and dying from coronavirus in U.K.

Britain’s government has been under heavy pressure to do more to directly dress issue after data consistently showed that coronavirus death rates were significantly higher for blacks and ethnic mirities compared to white people.

report, published Tuesday, didn't look at genetic factors, but said it was clear that pandemic “exposed and exacerbated longstanding inequalities” in country.

It said re was a strong association between ecomic disvant and COVID-19 diagses. Black people and mirity groups are more at risk because y are more likely to live in cramped housing, use public transportation and work in jobs with a higher risk of virus exposure.

It ded that historic racism and poorer experiences of health care or at work meant that mirity groups are less likely to seek care, or demand better protective equipment at work.

“Lack of trust of NHS (National Health Service) and healthcare treatment resulted in ir reluctance to seek care on a timely basis, and late presentation with disease,” paper said.

report said officials should start more comprehensive collection of ethnicity health data and ensure ethnicity is recorded in death certificates. It also recommended targeted messaging on smoking, obesity and improving manment of common health conditions like diabetes.

It came a day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson anunced a commission to look at what more can be done to fight racial inequality in U.K. Thousands protested across country for two weekends in demonstrations spurred by May 25 death of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis.