COVID-19 deaths by ethnic group, the role of co-morbidities

The ONS has released new analysis showing that people of BAME heritage face a higher risk of dying from COVID-19. Read the release on the ONS website here.

A group of senior CPC researchers responded to the release by highlighting the urgent need to develop health policies which take into account differences in social and economic resources between different ethnic groups and to put in place measures to support BAME elders and their families.

Maria Evandrou, Jane Falkingham, [Zhixin Feng|www.cpc.ac.uk/about_us/the_team/15/Zhixin_Frank_Feng#associate
], and [Athina Vlachantoni|www.cpc.ac.uk/about_us/the_team/50/Athina_Vlachantoni#staff
] found that older people from ethnic minorities report poorer health outcomes, even after controlling for social and economic disadvantages. Their paper, Ethnic inequalities in limiting health and self-reported health in later life revisited, uses Understanding Society data to shed light on a relatively under-researched area by exploring self-reported health in persons aged 60 years.

Professor Jane Falkingham OBE, Director of the ESRC Centre for Population Change and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Southampton, has responded to the ONS release:

"The fact that BAME elders report a higher level of comorbidities means that they face an elevated risk from COVID-19. This, combined with a higher propensity for some groups, such as Bangladeshi elders, to live multi-generational housing with younger generations working in high risk front-line occupations further elevates this risk."

"We urgently need to develop health policies which take into account differences in social and economic resources between different ethnic groups and to put in place measures to support BAME elders and their families."

Visit our Covid-19 webpage to find out how our researchers are responding to the pandemic.

Posted 07/05/2020 13:41