COVID-19 data has revealed an alarming trend: Black families face a much higher risk of contracting and dying from the virus. Public officials have focused on the underlying health issues that disproportionately affect African Americans, and research shows that differences in access to high-quality jobs, economic stability, quality education, health care services, and quality neighborhoods contribute to racial inequities in health.

Structural racism—the policies, programs, and institutional practices that facilitate the well-being of white families while creating barriers to the well-being of Black families—results in this unequal access to the health- and opportunity-promoting social determinants. A 2019 brief by IS Member Urban Institute examined policy options to help eliminate structural racism that policymakers might consider as they work to help the country recover, become more resilient, and reduce racial disparities illuminated by COVID-19.