Covid-19 morbimortality by race/skin color/ethnicity: the Brazilian and the North American experiences

ABSTRACT

This study sought to describe the experience of Brazil and the United States of América (USA) in relation to Covid-19 morbimortality data according to race/skin color/ethnicity. Toward this end, it seeks to describe the factors involved in the treatment and dissemination of the morbimortality data for such pathology in the two countries. The analysis includes epidemiological bulletins released by the Brazilian Ministry of Health, partial results from Brazil’s National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) for Covid-19 collected by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), and state-of-the-art health data about the impact of the pandemic in the USA, from the perspective of race/skin color/ethnicity. Despite the low quality of health information on Covid-19 morbimortality of black population, the results corroborate racial inequities in health for the disease, confirming the existence of structural and institutional racism in both countries. This article highlights the need to qualify data about race/skin color/ethnicity, by relating them to age, place of residence, type of residence, access to basic sanitation, and occupation, among other social determinants that impact how individuals become ill and die from Covid-19, in order to enact strategies and public policies that truly promote equity.

KEYWORDS
Race and health; Ethincity and health; Morbidity and mortality; Health informaton system; Racism