Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created the Michigan Coronavirus Task Force on Racial Disparities on Monday in an effort to study how the coronavirus pandemic has “disproportionately impacted communities of color” throughout Michigan.
Although African Americans represent just 13.6 percent of Michigan’s population, they make up 40 percent of deaths from the coronavirus. Nearly 80 percent of residents of the City of Detroit, the area most impacted by the coronavirus, are African American, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Detroit has more than 7,700 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 641 deaths, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. It is followed by Oakland County at 6,178 cases and 479 deaths and the rest of Wayne County at 6,176 confirmed cases and 507 deaths. Wayne County and Detroit are counted separately, according to the MDHHS.
“COVID-19 has taken a disproportionate toll on Michigan’s communities of color and I am confident this task force will help us identify the factors driving this disparity and to identify actions we can take to create a more equitable Michigan for everyone,” Whitmer said in a statement. “Each of the task force members will provide a unique perspective and play a vital part in identifying these barriers and ensuring all Michiganders have equal access to critical resource when they need them most.”
The task force will study the racial disparities in the coronavirus’ impact, as well as the “historical and systemic inequities that underlie them,” according to Whitmer’s office. It will focus on increasing transparency in data reporting, removing barriers to physical and mental healthcare, mitigate environmental and infrastructure factors in being exposed to the virus, and develop and improve systems for supporting economic recovery.
The task force will be chaired by Lieutenant Gov. Garlin Gilchrist and will include Department of Health and Human Services Director Robert Gordon or his designee, Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun and other members appointed by the governor.
“We know that generations of racial disparities and inequality has a detrimental impact on the lives of people across the state,” Gilchrist said in a statement. “The coronavirus pandemic has shown this inequity to be particularly damaging, especially in the black community, where the health of our friends and family has been disproportionately impacted. That’s why we are taking immediate action to assemble some of the greatest minds to tackle this racial injustice now and in the future.”
Read the complete list of Whitmer’s appointees to the task force here.
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Jordyn Pair is a reporter with The Michigan Star. Follow her on Twitter at @JordynPair. Email her at [email protected].
Image “Whitmer Announcement” by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
