Indiana data shows racial breakdown of COVID-19 cases
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Data recently released shows the racial breakdown of COVID-19 cases in the state.
Marion County makes up the brunt of known coronavirus cases. In line with what other neighboring states are seeing, black people account for a large percentage of cases.
Coronavirus has touched every county in the state, and health officials said 300 people have died as a result of it. But, data recently released by the Indiana State Department of Health shows a closer breakdown of which Hoosiers are catching the virus.
There have been about 8,200 confirmed coronavirus cases. White people make up about 50% of the coronavirus cases in the state. Black people make up about 20%.
It’s an interesting breakdown as black people only make up 10% of the state’s population; white people make up 85% of the population.
“A lot of the deaths are due to a variety of factors, not simply health-related, so as soon as we can come together and coalesce around that, the sooner we can probably address some of the outcomes spread across groups,” said Breanca Merritt with the Indiana University Center for Research on Inclusion and Social Policy.
“Just seeing those initial numbers certainly I think may be enough to jump-start some conversations,” Merritt said.
She said poverty and coronavirus may not be common denominators in many new coronavirus cases.
“Poverty itself is not an issue because, if that were the case, we would see lots of other communities feeling the similar effects of this.”
Instead, she said, it may boil down to the inability to work from home and difficulty with social distancing.