34 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • DECEMBER 2020
COVID HITS MINORITY SENIORS HARDER, STUDY SHOWS
Disrupting Disparities 3.0 is the third in
a series of reports analyzing racial and
ethnic-based inequities and outlining
concrete solutions to level the playing
field. The project, which began in 2018,
is a partnership between AARP New
York and the NAACP New York State
Conference, New York Urban League,
Asian American Federation, and Hispanic
Federation.
On Nov. 17, directors from AARP New
York and partnering organizations held
a virtual conference to present and discuss
the findings.
Reggie Nance, an AARP New York associate
state director for multicultural
outreach, noted that “more than 6,500
people have died in New York nursing
homes since the onset of the pandemic.”
This happens at a time when the rates
of Black people entering nursing homes
is increasing, while the rate of white
people entering nursing homes is going
down, he said.
Food insecurity, which is the limited
availability or access to adequate food,
is another major concern in the report.
“Covid-19 has significantly increased
food insecurity,” said Maggie Castro, an
AARP New York associate state director
for multicultural outreach, adding that
there is a definite racial divide among
food-insecure adults.
The federal Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP) provides
benefits and food-purchasing assistance
to reduce food insecurity, but more than
330,000 eligible New York State residents,
ages 60 and older, are not enrolled
in the program. Most of those who are
enrolled in SNAP live alone and in the
pandemic, leaving home, even for food,
poses a problem for at-risk residents.
Disrupting Disparities 3.0 proposes
several solutions to the systematic
ills plaguing communities of color in
New York, including a housing access
voucher program for homeless New
Yorkers or those facing homelessness.
It also proposes cost-effective home- and
community-based services that allow
older people to stay home, ensuring
online food shopping and delivery for
SNAP recipients, as well as guaranteed
access to adequate testing and personal
protective equipment for home health
aides.
“Our goal is to make sure we’re keeping
people safe in their homes,” said
Kristen McManus, AARP New York’s
associate state director for advocacy.
Additionally, the report calls for an
independent review of New York
State’s handling of Covid-19 in nursing
homes, a long-term care task force, and
an extended moratorium on evictions
throughout the state’s entire state of
emergency.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn) and
Doug E. Fresh, a hip-hop artist and
social advocate, attended the virtual
conference to further discuss these
issues.
“Too often, when New York catches a
cold, communities of color catch a fever,”
Jeffries said. “New Yorkers need
comprehensive relief now, and we must
ensure that any relief provided will
help disrupt the racial and ethnic disparities
within our state and nation.”
“It doesn’t make me feel good to see the
conditions and people not being able
to make money and go out there and
support their families,” Fresh said.
“We’re living in a time where we have
to be more concerned about each other,
not just ourselves. We have to support
each other.”
-With Maia Vines
“Too often, when New York catches a cold,
communities of color catch a fever,”
said Rep. Hakeem Jeffries.
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