Source: Health Policy Institute of Ohio
On June 4, 2020, the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released new requirements for states to report coronavirus data based on race, ethnicity, age, and sex of individuals tested for the virus, responding to demands from lawmakers for a clearer picture of the pandemic and its racial discrepancies (Source: “Trump Administration Sets Demographic Requirements for Coronavirus Reports,” New York Times, June 4).
All laboratories — as well as non-laboratory facilities offering on-site testing and in-home testing — will be required to send demographic data to state or local public health departments based on the individual’s residence, according to details released by the HHS.
The new guidelines came as Robert R. Redfield, MD, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, faced a barrage of questions from House lawmakers at a health subcommittee hearing about his agency’s often-halting response to the pandemic, and what some members of Congress said was its failure to anticipate and explain the pandemic’s effect on black and Hispanic communities.
“We didn’t have the data we needed to be able to answer that in a responsive way,” Dr. Redfield conceded.