SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (ABC4 News) – Utah health officials are trying to compile data on how many ethnic minorities have contracted the COVID-19 novel coronavirus.
The news comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a report which showed the virus is disproportionately affecting African American communities.
“Are we seeing this trend in Utah? Black Americans accounting for more hospitalizations than they should, based on Utah’s population?” ABC4’s Brittany Johnson asked on Thursday during the health department’s daily briefing.
“We actually pulled that data yesterday,” replied Dr. Angela Dunn, State Epidemiologist for the Utah Department of Health.
Doctor Dunn said the “race and ethnicity data is not complete” and health officials are looking at ways to “fill in the gaps.”
“The numbers are still so small that being able to identify trends in our non-white population is very difficult in Utah, but we’re working on ways on how we can present that to the public without risking identifying an individual who is sick with COVID-19.”
Dunn said health officials are hoping to be able to show data publicly as soon as next week.
