Legislation addresses COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on Hispanic, Black Americans

NEW JERSEY — When COVID-19 hit the Esparza household, it was a domino effect that shook the New Jersey family to its core.

“I woke up one day and had a fever,” Gabriela Esparza explained, describing the tumultuous rollercoaster she and her entire immediate family experienced back in April. “Then the next day my mother had a fever, three days after [my father] got a fever.”

“After him it was my brother then my husband, my daughter.”

The family’s patriarch Ignacio nearly lost his fight with the virus, but made a recovery that stunned even his doctors.

The New Jersey family’s battle with COVID-19 isn’t an anomaly. They’re part of a troubling trend nationwide; infection rates among Hispanic and Black Americans were three times higher than infection rates among white Americans.

The staggering federal data, which also shows communities of color are twice as likely to die from the virus than their white counterparts, is now the centerpiece of new legislation introduced by Senator Bob Menendez.

The New Jersey senator introduced the COVID-19 Health Disparities Action Act this week along with Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland. The bill will focus on improving contact tracing, testing and providing public awareness campaigns in minority communities around the country.

It’s something local leaders said has been drastically lacking in the current federal and state response.

“We knew that people with underlining conditions were going to be hardest hit,” NYC Public Advocate Jumaane Williams told PIX11 News. "We knew where those folks lived and we did not put any infrastructure for them to be tested.”

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams said while the bill is much needed, it needs to go farther.

“We need to really look at what we did as a country, city and state and determine if they were some civil rights violations and if anyone intentionally did not assure the right resources would go to those communities of color,” Adams said.

The proposed legislation already has the support of a number of prominent Democrats as well as several health groups.

If the bill moves forward, it will play a vital role in potential vaccine distributions that will be tailored to minority communities.