BAME people up to twice as likely to die from coronavirus, says PHE report
UK residents with a black and Asian ethnic minority (BAME) background are up to twice as likely to die from coronavirus, according to a new Public Health England (PHE) report.
The report found that Britons with a Bangladeshi ethnicity were twice as likely to die than White Britons from Covid-19, while “people of Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Other Asian, Caribbean and other black ethnicity had between 10 and 50 per cent higher risk of death”.
The report says this was “after accounting for the effect of sex, age, deprivation and region”.
When taking these factors into account, the Office of National Statistics (ONS) said Covid-19 death rates among Black Britons was up to four-times higher than white Britons.
“The relationship between ethnicity and health is complex and likely to be the result of a combination of factors,” the PHE report said.
“Firstly, people of BAME communities are likely to be at increased risk of acquiring the infection. This is because BAME people are more likely to live in urban areas, in overcrowded households, in deprived areas, and have jobs that expose them to higher risk.
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“People of BAME groups are also more likely than people of White British ethnicity to be born abroad, which means they may face additional barriers in accessing services that are created by, for example, cultural and language differences.”
The report added that people in BAME communities are “likely to be at increased risk of poorer outcomes once they acquire the infection” due to higher rates of co-morbidities that increase the risk of death from coronavirus.
The government report came under fire from some BAME campaigners for not including any recommendations on how to combat the disproportionate amount of Covid-19 deaths.
One campaigner told ITV that the report was “toothless” and “a damp squib”.
Health secretary Matt Hancock addressed MPs shortly after the report was released, saying he felt a “deep responsibility because this pandemic has exposed huge disparities in the health of our nation”.
“This work underlines that being black or from a minority ethnic background is a major risk factor,” he said.
“It is very clear that some people are significantly more vulnerable to Covid-19 and this is something I’m determined to understand in full and take action to address.”
“Black lives matter, as do those of the poorest areas of our country.”
Shadow Labour secretary Jonathan Ashworth said the figures showed that Covid-19 “thrives on inequalities”.
“Yes indeed, black lives matter but it is surely a call to action that black, Asian and minority ethnic people are more likely to die from Covid and more likely to be admitted to intensive care from Covid,” he said.
The report was unveiled today, after media speculation that its release had been delayed due to fears it could stoke racial tensions in light of ongoing protests in the US.
Downing Street dismissed such speculation today as untrue.