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Uneven Impacts

One important way that Maxwell faculty are contributing to our understanding of the pandemic is by assessing how it has affected specific segments of the population.

In the early days of COVID-19’s spread in the U.S., reports suggested that rates of infection, hospitalization and mortality were particularly high in Black and Latino communities. At the time, says Marc Garcia, a specialist on health disparities in the U.S. and a new member of Maxwell’s sociology faculty, “The assumptions made about these communities of color were that their health was a result of individual characteristics.

“We now know that structural factors have led to these negative health outcomes among older adults, in particular, including inequalities of wealth, racial segregation, the lack of green spaces and health care access,” adds Garcia, also a researcher in the Aging Studies Institute.

One of Garcia’s current projects compares data on COVID deaths in 2020 and 2021. He has found that Blacks and Latinos are still dying from COVID at much higher rates than whites, but some states—New York and Illinois, for instance—have been much more successful at reducing that disparity than others, notably California. Since COVID policies vary substantially by state, Garcia says his research aims “to examine these differences so that we can better target public health efforts toward communities.”

Another group disproportionately impacted by the pandemic is people with intellectual and developmental disability (IDD), especially those living in group homes.

The research of sociologist Scott Landes, who worked in human services before beginning an academic career, has helped spotlight the high rates of COVID transmission and fatalities among people with IDD, who often have underlying health conditions that increase their risk. His work has been cited in media outlets like the New York Times and PBS NewsHour, and by Congressional legislators as part of a push to improve COVID data reporting on this often-overlooked population, and to prioritize them for vaccination.

Landes’ work in this area continues. In one new project, he’s analyzing data from a New York City provider that serves 25,000 adults and children with IDD, aiming to get a clearer picture of COVID’s impact on those living with their families or in their own homes.

“The overarching goal in my research—and it harkens back to my time providing direct services—is that the work I do actually makes a difference in the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disability,” says Landes, an associate professor and researcher with the ASI. “They are often marginalized within society in general, and within the medical community in particular.”

Measuring Health

A wave of recently announced projects by Maxwell faculty, all supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), will continue to shed light on the ongoing repercussions of the pandemic.

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One five-year study, funded by a $3.5 million NIH grant, will examine how COVID-19 has affected the health and education of children in the New York City public school system. Leading the research team are Amy Ellen Schwartz, professor and chair of economics and professor of public administration and international affairs (PAIA) and Daniel Patrick Moynihan Professor of Public Affairs, Brian Elbel of New York University, with co-investigators including Schwartz’s PAIA colleague, Michah W. Rothbart, and members of New York’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.