Much was made of the fact that noncommunicable pathologies such as coronary artery disease and malignancies caused the majority of all world deaths in 1990. A very different picture emerges, however, when we compare causes of death among the wealthiest fifth of the worlds population to the afflictions that kill the poorest fifth: although only 8 percent of deaths among the worlds wealthiest were caused by infections or by maternal or perinatal mortality, fully 56 percent of all deaths among the poorest were caused by these pathologies, with infectious diseases at the head of the list. (Paul Farmer: Infections and Inequalities, p. 42)
Poverty and racism increase the likelihood of dire outcomes among the sick by restricting access to effective therapy or rendering it less effective if patients are malnourished or addicted. Poverty clearly decreases the ability of patients to comply with demanding, lengthy regimens. Indeed, the advent of truly effective therapies only brings into starker relief the centrality of social inequalities, when unequal access to these therapies heightens the inequalities of infection and reactivation. (Farmer: p. 14)
Farmer claims that regardless of the state of modern health facilities such as technologies, hospitals, and highly trained professionals, overall health of a population is worsened by economic and political hierarchies. As income and social inequalities are extended higher to lower, access to health care becomes less likely and rates of infectious disease will rise.
Write a six-page paper which responds to these assertions regarding Covid 19. Your paper needs to incorporate the following elements:
Find news sources relating to the questions below.
Utilize data given by the CDC to support how income disparities increase rates of Covid in certain populations.
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/health-equity/racial-ethnic-disparities/index.html
View the following videos on Youtube:
Dr. Paul Farmer: Centuries of Inequality in the U.S. Laid Groundwork for Pandemic Devastation – YouTube (Links to an external site.)
Thesis Question: In one paragraph, describe the main thesis advanced by Paul Farmer regarding poverty and income inequalities as markers of healthcare. In one page of your paper, describe how data variables of class and race fit into the model given by Farmer regarding Covid 19 deaths? In the remaining pages, use news resources and CDC data to show why rates of Covid 19 increased within one U.S. zip code and decreased within another zip code in the same state or region.
