COVID-19 Infection and Hypertension in Correlation with Race

Healthcare disparities exist in the U.S. between different races. This study investigated the frequency of COVID-19 infections and hypertension cases among five different racial groups (White, Black, Asian, Native American, and Native Hawaiian). The study also examined the correlation between COVID-19 infections and hypertension with the hypothesis that because of disease predisposition and socioeconomic barriers, Black populations would have the highest rates of COVID-19 infections and hypertension. We used data from the Kaiser Family Foundation regarding COVID-19 cases and race in conjunction with Census population data to determine whether COVID-19 case frequency means differed by race. Data on hypertension and race from America’s Health Rankings was used to determine if hypertension frequency means differed by race. One-way ANOVA was used for statistical analysis. For each ANOVA procedure, there was a statistically significant difference between the means of all datasets. We concluded that the percentages of COVID-19 infections and hypertension cases differed by race. Black individuals had the highest mean rates of hypertension, though this was not statistically significant, while Native Americans had the highest COVID-19 infection rates. A slight positive correlation was also found between COVID-19 infection rates and hypertension rates by state.