BY DR. DONNA-MARIE
MANASSEH
Nearly three years into a
global pandemic, and the data
is clear: people of color (POC)
are at least twice as likely to
die from COVID-19 as their
white counterparts. But sadly,
the racial health disparities
revealed by the pandemic extend
far beyond the novel virus
itself. As the public health
crisis fi nally begins to wane
the consequences resulting
from delayed medical screenings
and preventative care are
becoming apparent.
Though we’ve rightly
feared for our health and protecting
ourselves from COVID
19, too many of us have
put ourselves at greater risk of
not detecting other life-threatening
illnesses by putting off
routine medical screenings.
According to research from
the American Cancer Society,
over a third of U.S. adults
failed to get routine cancer
screenings due to fears related
to the pandemic. And
what’s more, about 30 percent
of patients have chosen or considered
COURIER L 46 IFE, MARCH 11-17, 2022
delaying or changing
their treatment plans due to
concerns about contracting
the virus.
As the Chief of Breast Surgery
and the Director of the
Maimonides Breast Center in
Brooklyn, I can tell you that
breast cancer has no boundaries
– and what’s worse, it does
discriminate. Despite having
similar rates of breast cancer,
mortality is approximately 40
percent higher among black
women compared with white
women. People of color face
higher risk and rates of infection,
hospitalization, and
death from the virus, all
while facing barriers in access
to care. Therefore, providers
and women across the
city need to recommit to prioritizing
preventative care
and screenings before it’s too
late. In a diverse city like New
York, we cannot afford to let
the health of our women of
color fall by the wayside.
While preventative care
may seem of little importance
amidst a global pandemic, the
National Cancer Institute predicts
that nearly 10,000 breast
and colorectal cancer deaths
will be due to pandemic-related
delays in cancer screening
and treatment. Given this
reality, it is imperative that
women – particularly women
of color– prioritize preventive
care and resume regular
mammograms and ultrasounds.
As a cancer specialist, I
have been privileged to help
countless patients survive
breast cancer because of early
detection. What I can say
with certainty is that routine
screenings remain our strongest
defense. The bottom line
is this: the earlier you fi nd
malignant tumors, the better
chance you’ll have at survival.
According to the American
Cancer Society, when breast
cancer is detected early in the
localized stage, the fi ve-year
relative survival rate is 99 percent.
This statistic gives us incredible
hope but it also serves
as a critical reminder that
routine testing and early detection
are fundamental fi rst
steps on the road to victory.
And since the number of preventive
cancer screening tests
received by women through
the Center for Disease Control’s
National Breast and Cervical
Early Detection program
has declined considerably,
doctors and medical centers
across the country must begin
to sound the alarm on the dangers
of this trend.
As we work to get past this
pandemic, we must not allow
the potential consequences of
undetected illness or else our
progress will be set back. The
systemic inequities in our nation’s
healthcare system have
always existed, but the COVID
19 pandemic has shined
a new light on the issue. We
can only hope that this reality
has brought an urgency to the
fi ght to reclaim our health and
access equitable patient care.
Ten years ago, Maimonides
Medical Center opened its
Breast Cancer Center because
no such institution existed in
Brooklyn to help women get
mammograms and dedicated
cancer care. We have helped
save the lives of thousands.
For women, especially women
of color, it’s time to take our
health into our own hands. We
cannot afford to do otherwise.
Dr. Donna-Marie Manasseh
is chief, division of breast surgery
and director of the breast
cancer program at the Maimonides
Breast Cancer Center
in Brooklyn.
EDITORIAL
OP-ED
Gas prices across the
city are now exceeding
$4 a gallon as the economic
fallout over the Russian
invasion of Ukraine two
weeks ago continues to be felt
around the world.
And yet, those prices may
climb even higher after the
Biden administration announced
Tuesday an oil embargo
against Russia. It’s the
latest salvo in the economic
war against Vladimir Putin,
aiming to get the Russian dictator
to stop this needless war
and get out of Ukraine.
Make no mistake, these
measures are a necessity to
stop Putin. His aggression,
based on his demented, empirial
vision of grandeur, has
cost thousands of lives, and
sent more than two million
Ukrainians fl eeing to neighboring
countries for safety. He
must be punished.
The costs of this economic
war, however, are being felt by
Americans still reeling from
the COVID-19 pandemic and infl
ation. Surging fuel prices not
only hit the average consumer
in the wallet; they also slam
truckers and shipping companies,
and they pass the costs on
to the consumer as well.
The Biden administration
says it’s working to help reduce
the economic pain, including
releasing billions of oil barrels
from its Strategic Petroleum
Reserve. However, it should
work with Congress and state
governments to give drivers
and deliverers an immediate
break at the pump by partially
or completely suspending fuel
taxes for a temporary period.
Whenever you buy a gallon
of gasoline in New York state,
you’re paying a federal excise
tax of 18.4 cents and a 46.19 cents
state sales tax. Truckers buying
a gallon of diesel fuel pay a federal
tax of 24.4 cents and a state
sales tax of 44.64 cents.
Add it up, and each gallon
of gasoline is taxed 64.59 cents;
every gallon of diesel fuel is
taxed 69.04 cents. The average
gas and diesel prices in New
York City is $4.336 and $4.992
per gallon, respectively, according
to the American Automobile
Association.
A full drop of the gasoline
sales tax would lower the average
gas price below the $4 per
gallon mark. Pausing the diesel
sales tax would also provide
economic relief to delivery companies
and businesses, and help
spare passing some of the fueling
costs onto the customers.
Full or partial suspension
of the gas taxes would, of
course, take funding out of the
state and federal government
coffers. However, the governments
would make up the lost
revenue through increased
economic activity, as consumers
would use the money they
save to purchase other necessities.
We urge the Biden Administration,
Gov. Kathy Hochul
and state lawmakers to support
suspending gas and diesel
Suspend the gas tax
The unforseen consequence of
COVID-19 for women of color
“We must not
allow the potential
consequences of
undetected illness or
else our progress will
be set back.