CDC: Blacks comprise 30 percent of COVID-19 cases

(BlackmansStreet.Today) — Blacks comprised 30 percent of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. as of Saturday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported with little fanfare although Black-elected officials had been pushing for release of national demographic data concerning coronavirus infections and deaths among African Americans.

The data comes with a big explanation. The numbers we hear and see on TV, read on the websites of the Johns Hopkins Center and the World Health Organization are markedly different from what the CDC has published.

The CDC, reported on Saturday, April 18, the number of COVID-19 cases by race, explaining the figures are updated daily. The numbers include data from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Numbers reported on Saturday and Sunday are preliminary and not yet confirmed by the state and territorial health departments, the CDC said.

The CDC does not know the exact number of COVID-19 illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths for a variety of reasons.

COVID-19 can cause mild illness, symptoms might not appear immediately, there are delays in reporting and testing, not everyone who is infected get tested or seeks medical care, and there may be differences in how states and territories confirm numbers in their jurisdictions.

Of the 497,161 total COVID-19 cases as of April 18, Blacks accounted for 36,498, compared with whites who accounted for 77,235 cases. Asians accounted for 5,307 cases and Hispanics accounted for 20,244 cases. The data also includes Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander or 383 cases, Native Americans or Alaska Natives 765 cases

By age group, Blacks under 18 accounted for 437 cases (28.5 percent), Blacks 18-44 accounted for 11,018 (31 percent), Blacks 45 to 64 accounted for 14,218 cases (33 percent), Blacks 65 to 74 accounted for 5,293 cases (34 percent) and Blacks 75 and older accounted for 4,601 cases (22.3 percent) and there 931 cases (20 percent) involving people whose age group is not known. The total figure comes to 36, 498 or 30 percent.

This article originally published in the April 27, 2020 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.