Many minorities and/or low income people face more barriers when accessing healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of these individuals rely on student-run clinics for access to healthcare. Some clinics have been shut down due to the pandemic, preventing these underprivileged populations from getting necessary health services. 

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Populations with minorities and lower income individuals usually lack health insurance. For example, Hispanics and African Americans are less likely to have health insurance than non-Hispanic whites. Those who do not have health insurance are less likely to have access to and/or may be reluctant to meet with primary care providers, which makes it more difficult to detect and manage chronic disease and other health conditions. 

Healthcare access and its relation to disparate outcomes in the COVID-19 pandemic

Singu S, Acharya A, Challagundla K and Byrareddy SN. (2020). Impact of
Social Determinants of Health on the Emerging COVID-19 Pandemic in the
United States. Frontiers in Public Health 8:406.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2020.00406
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7385373/

Impact of Social Determinants of Health on the Emerging COVID-19 Pandemic in the United States

Student-run clinics and its demonstration of healthcare access in relation to disparate outcomes in the COVID-19 Pandemic

In this study, American adults were asked if they would seek healthcare if they believed they had been infected with COVID-19. Those who reported that they would not seek healthcare were non-white, had a high school education or below, and/or earned less than $40,000 per year. 

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