Executive Order on Ensuring an Equitable Pandemic Response and Recovery

"By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to address the disproportionate and severe impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on communities of color and other underserved populations, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1.  Purpose.

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated severe and pervasive health and social inequities in America.  For instance, people of color experience systemic and structural racism in many facets of our society and are more likely to become sick and die from COVID-19.  The lack of complete data, disaggregated by race and ethnicity, on COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, and mortality rates, as well as underlying health and social vulnerabilities, has further hampered efforts to ensure an equitable pandemic response.  Other communities, often obscured in the data, are also disproportionately affected by COVID-19, including sexual and gender minority groups, those living with disabilities, and those living at the margins of our economy.  Observed inequities in rural and Tribal communities, territories, and other geographically isolated communities require a place-based approach to data collection and the response.  Despite increased State and local efforts to address these inequities, COVID-19’s disparate impact on communities of color and other underserved populations remains unrelenting.
 

Addressing this devastating toll is both a moral imperative and pragmatic policy.  It is impossible to change the course of the pandemic without tackling it in the hardest-hit communities.  In order to identify and eliminate health and social inequities resulting in disproportionately higher rates of exposure, illness, and death, I am directing a Government-wide effort to address health equity.  The Federal Government must take swift action to prevent and remedy differences in COVID-19 care and outcomes within communities of color and other underserved populations..."
Equitable Pandemic Response