The COVID-19 pandemic has and continues to exacerbate inequities in care access and service quality for minoritized populations. Higher rates of illness and death among people of color reflect increased risk of exposure to the virus due to living, working, and transportation situations; increased risk of experiencing severe illness if infected due to higher rates of underlying health conditions; and increased barriers to testing and treatment due to existing disparities in access to health care.

This session will highlight strategies to center equity during crises and share examples from organizations operationalizing this work.

1. Explain what constitutes a crisis.
2. Identify racial inequalities, economic disadvantages, and structural violence that has impacted and resulted from emergency responses.
3. Identify principles and strategies to center equity during an emergency response.
4. Identify examples from organizations operationalizing equity-centered responses during emergency response.