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Gov. Wolf & Lt. Gov Fetterman release findings from COVID-19 Response Task Force for Health Disparity report

Gov. Tom Wolf and Lt. Governor John Fetterman have released a report from the COVID-19 Response Task Force for Health Disparity.

The task force was created in April to help communicate issues about how the pandemic is affecting the state’s minority and marginalized populations.

“About a month after the first cases of COVID-19 were identified in Pennsylvania, I asked Lt. Gov. Fetterman to chair a new task force that would identify any differences in health outcomes for different populations,” Wolf said. “And to make recommendations to ensure every Pennsylvanian, regardless of race, gender, ethnicity, or socioeconomic background, has equal opportunity to survive and thrive during this pandemic and beyond.”

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The task force presented the report to Wolf this week after months of meetings and outreach from members.

According to the report, these are the top takeaways from each of the six issues looked at:

  1. Housing: Sealing evictions for Pennsylvanians who applied for unemployment during COVID-19 will prevent tenants from being penalized and jeopardizing their future housing stability through no fault of their own.
  2. Criminal Justice: Implementing a Driver’s License Amnesty Program will correct an oversight that left many Black and Brown Pennsylvanians with decreased mobility. While the legislature acted to end license suspensions for non-driving-related offenses, the move was not retroactive. This limits the ability to travel to healthcare and forces more people onto mass transit that could spread the virus.
  3. Food Insecurity: Increasing the income threshold for food assistance will ensure that more people are eligible.
  4. Health Disparity: It is crucial to continue the Alternative Payment Arrangement that helped to finance the gap when individuals were unable to access services until serviceaccess fluctuations subside.
  5. Education: Standardizing remote learning and access to technology will help to ensure all students start with equal learning opportunities.
  6. Economic Opportunities: Helping Black-and-Brown-owned businesses with direct, expedited assistance through special programs will reduce the number of these businesses that are forced to close permanently because of the virus.

Each area either directly or indirectly affects the health of Pennsylvanians and must be addressed, the report says.

“I just want to thank this diverse Task Force and group of stakeholders who gave such important insight towards the creation of this report”, said Lt. Governor John Fetterman. “With 57 specific policy recommendations, I believe that this report will be beneficial in policy development to help end the health disparities in our marginalized communities, which have been so vastly exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

According to a release, Wolf’s five commissions played a key role on the task force and were in daily communication with those disproportionately impacted by COVID, especially Black and Latino communities.

“The steering committee is made up of key cabinet members working together with our policy leaders to build a short- and long-term policy agenda to dismantle the systemic racism and resulting inequities that exist around us, inequities that have been exacerbated by this pandemic,” Wolf said. “My goal is to be intentional in all aspects of commonwealth work to maintain a commitment to a diverse, culturally responsive workforce.”

Click here to read the full report.