Researchers Investigating Whether Long-Term Exposure To Air Pollution May Account For Disproportionate Impact Of Coronavirus Pandemic On Minorities

reports across the US, “low-income communities of color...are exposed to significantly higher levels of pollution, studies have found, and also see higher levels of lung disease and other ailments,” so now researchers are investigating whether “long-term exposure to air pollution plays a role in the coronavirus crisis, particularly since minorities are disproportionately dying.” The New York Times adds, “People with two conditions tied to air pollution, inflammatory lung disease and coronary heart disease, face a higher risk for severe Covid-19, preliminary research has shown. Last month, work by Harvard specialists found that coronavirus patients in areas with historically heavy air pollution are more likely to die than patients elsewhere.” https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/17/climate/pollution-poverty-coronavirus.html