The pandemic opened the eyes to many Americans about underlying health disparities that have resulted in a significant number of minorities dying from complications due to COVID-19. Why were so many Americans unaware of these disparities? April is National Minority Health Month, and the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD) shares how the purpose of this month is to do the following;

• Builds awareness about the disproportionate burden of premature death and illness in minority populations.
• Encourages action through health education, early detection, and control of disease complications.

Initially established by Booker T. Washington as National Negro Health Week in 1915, a congressional resolution in 2002 established National Minority Health Month. So, why the lack of awareness of health disparities within the general population? I'll admit that it wasn't until after my very own cancer diagnosis nearly eight years ago that I began to focus on the subject of cancer disparities. We're nearing the end of the month, and I have not seen much marketing and awareness across social media for National Minority Health Month. We all know when it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.

This year's theme is Vaccine Ready to increase vaccine acceptance within the minority community. The hashtags that are being used with this campaign are #VaccineReady and #NMHM2021. A quick check on social media and this national campaign is not garnering a lot of attention and reach similar to Breast Cancer Awareness month in October. Here's the reach across social media for these two hashtags as of 4/25/21;

• Facebook: #VaccineReady (2,500) & #NMHM2021 (1,300)
• Instagram: #VaccineReady (1,000+) & #NMHM2021 (500+)
• Twitter: #VaccineReady (100 Tweets and a Reach of 203,132) & #NMHM2021 (100 Tweets and a Reach of 231,426)

How can National Minority Health Month garner the same amount of focus and attention as Breast Cancer Awareness Month? One way is through targeted programming. A few examples of programs include the following;

• The Fred Hutch University of Washington Cancer Consortium hosted a Health and Wellness Festival from April 1 - 30, 2021
• On the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), Beyond the White Coat podcast, they have a show titled, Racism Under the Microscope.
• The focus of the Department of Health and Human Resources, Office of Minority Health, is for minority communities to become Vaccine Ready through their #VaccineReady campaign.
• The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Office of Minority Health (OMS) is hosted a two-day virtual forum: The Road to Equity: Examining Structural Racism in Health Care, to highlight CMS's renewed focus on health equity, address structural racism in health care, and establish federal agencies' roles as equity partners. 

Another way is to increase the number of mentions and discussions about this topic by the media, elected officials, companies, minority-focused organizations, major health-related companies, celebrities, and influencers. Like the "pink" campaign by breast cancer, a coordinated marketing campaign could bring about much-needed attention to health disparities and ways to fight the inequities.

Sadly enough, it wasn't until after my cancer fight that I focused attention on the cancer disparities. My own diagnosis was in 2013, and 11 years after the establishment of National Minority Health Month, I had no awareness of this awareness month and disparities. I wonder if prior knowledge of this subject would have altered how I approached my health before my cancer diagnosis. There has to be a push to increase the promotion of National Minority Health Month. The pandemic has already provided immediate justification for the increased amount of focus on this topic. Now, funding to support this awareness must follow.

During this pandemic, the unemployment rate for African-Americans has reached nearly 20% in March.  With this group having the highest proportion holding low-wage jobs, this statistic can have a devastating impact on health outcomes.  In 2017, nearly 10% of African Americans were uninsured, the numbers are likely to climb during this pandemic.  A new study, shows that disruptions in health insurance coverage can have a devastating impact on cancer care and outcomes.  African-Americans already have the highest rates of cancer incidents than any other racial group.  

Due to a lack of coverage, uninsured have lower cancer screenings and critical delays in treatment result in poor cancer outcomes that disproportionately impact African-Americans.  Sara Collins provides options to secure health insurance for unemployed.  This insurance coverage can be secured if you are laid off or face another type of employment disruption due to COVID-19, to include COBRA, the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid.  Some states have even opened special enrollment periods.