COVID-19 becomes a surprising advocate for social issues in the US

Health insurance coverage, minimum wage, access to basic commodities: all are issues being forced into the limelight by the coronavirus pandemic.

While the nation adapts to COVID-19 safety measures and the consequences of this pandemic, empathy and advocacy are beginning to surge as social issues that polluted American society are coming to light.

Health care and health insurance:

As the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. continue to rise, the nation’s health care system is put more and more under scrutiny.

A New York Times article, which highlighted Germany’s remarkably low coronavirus-related deaths, compared the response measures taken by the U.S. and by Germany and noted that Germany’s proactive measures, like developing and mass producing tests when the virus was first was discovered, was one of the many reasons why Germany was able to maintain relatively low death rates.

In comparison, the U.S. is still behind on developing and testing citizens, according to another New York Times article, which called the lack of tests available in the U.S. “a signature failure” for combating the new coronavirus. Similarly, a Washington Post article detailed the repeating missteps the U.S. government took while preparing and distributing testing and particularly highlighted the diverging methodologies between the U.S. and South Korea, which proved that the government’s response was irrationally optimistic and dreadfully slow.

The U.S. falling behind other counties in health care is not a recent problem; an article by Commonwealth Fund, written in 2017, underscored the disparities between the health care system in the U.S. and those in U.K., Australia, and the Netherlands and even noted that “timely and accessible health care” could help combat a lot of health issues in the U.S., but the American health care system “falls short.” These shortcomings are further emphasized in times of crisis, like the outbreak of a new disease.

Even now that testing is becoming more readily available for people with symptoms or possible exposure, it is uncertain if it even is economically within reach for those without insurance. An article by the Washington Post reports that there are 27 million uninsured Americans that could find testing unaffordable and that most of those who are uninsured could have a higher risk of exposure to the virus because they usually have low-paying jobs that don’t provide insurance and require contact with the public; this combination could prove to be deadly or at least seriously endangering if uninsured Americans are forced to choose between their budget and their health.

Minimum wage and working conditions:

Case in point, janitors in St. Louis held a protest for higher pay at the beginning of February, before the coronavirus outbreak in the U.S. peaked in mid to late March, according to an audio report by NPR; this protest, which called for fair pay for fair labor by raising their wages to $15 per hour, exemplifies that hourly and low-paying jobs tend to be risky and poorly compensated.

Working conditions for janitors have further deteriorated with this growing pandemic; a story from the New York Times called attention to the fact that janitors are not being warned about possible exposure to the virus or the hazardous chemicals they are given to combat it and although they play a huge role in keeping the population safe, their safety seems to be an afterthought.

However, this is a problem world wide, cleaners in the U.K. are facing the same conditions as their American counterparts; a story from New Statesman narrates the stories of several cleaners who “fear living on statutory sick pay alone almost as much as the virus itself,” indicating that the global regard for the safety of those who maintain work spaces clean is extremely lacking and they are being poorly compensated for their labor.

This disregard for the safety and health of vital personnel is also seen in the scarcity of protective equipment available for those in direct contact with the virus; nurses have begun protesting the face mask and gloves shortage in many hospitals, according to a New York Post article, many nurses at the beginning of the pandemic were instructed to wear a new mask for every patient, but as the pandemic continues to grow and supplies continue to run low, they have been told that one mask can be worn for a week; many call this practice unsafe and a direct reflection of equipment shortage.

Other essential workers, like grocery store employees, who are still required to work during quarantines and stay-at-home mandates have seen positive changes in wages and compensations in some states; A report by Mother Jones notes that grocery store workers in Minnesota and Vermont would be classified as “essential tier 2 workers” which will provide them and their families free child care. Acknowledging them as such highlights the fact that low-wage work is just as essential for society as high paying jobs, an article from the Intelligencer notes.

Access to basic commodities:

As citizens are urged to stay home and several states close schools for the rest of the instructional year, many students have lost access to commodities their schools provided.

According to a report by the New England Journal of Medicine nearly 35 million children were served by government nutrition programs before school closures and even though the government is taking steps to reinstate their access to meals, there are still concerns about the safety of these programs and their accessibility to the communities they are intended to serve. Programs in South Carolina, Michigan and New York are attempting to bring meals to families with lower incomes, however the effectiveness of food delivery and disease prevention are yet to be proven, according to the report.

Similarly, many students from low-income backgrounds lost internet access with school closures; according to a report from CityLab and a Pew Research Center study, 15% of homes with school-aged children do not have reliable access to the internet, which makes it easier for them to fall behind during the remainder of this pandemic. The report also explained that most of the students who don’t have reliable internet access tend to be from low-income households.

To combat this issue, UNESCO recently launched a new program, Global Education Coalition, to help “vulnerable and disadvantaged students” who are at a higher risk of falling behind in school during this pandemic; this coalition relies on the collaboration of several private sector companies that are willing to share their technology and expertise to protect the education of learners all around the world.

Similarly, in the U.S., Verizon and The New York Times partnered to provide resources to students and teachers in “underserved communities.” Verizon’s Innovative Learning Schools program is now helping more than 200,000 students and more than 12,000 teachers in the U.S., according to their website.