For immediate release -- June 18, 2020
New Haven, CT – The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed stark differences in how Connecticut residents are able to access the resources they need to maintain good health. These health disparities are rooted in broader inequities in education, economic stability, nutrition, housing, health care, and social context, all of which must be addressed in order to help communities to recover from the pandemic and promote resilience, according to a new report from DataHaven.
The new report, titled “Towards Health Equity in Connecticut: The Role of Social Inequality and the Impact of COVID-19” (click here to visit the main report page) offers an in-depth analysis of the factors underlying widespread health inequities in the state, such as discrimination, poverty, and access to community resources. Among the most pronounced results of these are the gaps in life expectancy, where people born in neighborhoods just a few miles apart may see life expectancy gaps of up to 20 years.
The report is available for free online at ctdatahaven.org/healthequity.
"Never has the DataHaven report on health equity in our state been more timely,” said Sten Vermund, Dean of the Yale School of Public Health. “The documentation of how social inequalities drive adverse health care outcomes is stark, reminding us that social determinants of disease are the strongest drivers in Connecticut of who lives and who dies.”
This report offers actionable recommendations for mitigating health disparities by addressing social disparities, such as expanding insurance coverage; closing gaps in educational opportunities beginning in youth; increasing economic opportunities and access to food, housing, and comprehensive social services; and reducing discrimination in employment, health care, policing, wealth building, and urban planning. To target communities most affected by the legacy of discrimination, these policies should be designed and executed in collaboration with community-based organizations. These measures alone will not end the devastation of COVID-19—that will require continued work—but reducing social inequality can alleviate the pandemic’s burden on the most vulnerable Connecticut populations and boost community resilience.
“Connecticut must take corrective action on the policies and practices that have led to the social inequities documented in this new report,” said Mark Abraham, Executive Director of DataHaven. “These are more important than ever to monitor through a health equity lens, as the data about Connecticut’s recovery as a whole can otherwise hide how conditions may be worsening for groups that are impacted by racism and other forms of oppression.”
Mark Abraham
Executive Director, DataHaven
203-500-7059
DataHaven is a non-profit organization with a 25-year history of public service to Connecticut. Our mission is to empower people to create thriving communities by collecting and ensuring access to data on well-being, equity, and quality of life. DataHaven is a formal partner of the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership of the Urban Institute in Washington, DC.
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