Detroit has become a national hotspot for the coronavirus epidemic.
Wayne County, where the city is located, is the third deadliest county in the nation, as its coronavirus death toll has recently climbed to 346 and while they make up just 14 percent of the entire state's population, black residents make up 41 percent of Michigan's total virus deaths.
Mayor Mike Duggan of Detroit said that African Americans are more likely to suffer from heart disease, asthma, and chronic kidney disease, which could be making their recovery from the virus more difficult.
"The coronavirus is exacerbating this racial disparity in a serious way," the Mayor said. "If you already have a weaker heart, you already have weaker kidneys, you already have weaker lungs, your body is not as able to fight this off."
Granting that he didn't have scientific evidence to back up such medical claims, Mayor Duggan noted that the racial health disparity in the U.S. "has been terrible for a long time."
"I have no doubt that when this is said and done, we're gonna look back on the fact that the racial gap in health care in this country was made much worse by this virus."
And while he isn't sure why Detroit is one of the country's epicenters, the Mayor said that he's focused on making sure Detroit hospitals can handle the burden of a spike in patients.
"I spent eight years running the Detroit Medical Center… before I was Mayor. They're doing an outstanding job," Duggan said.
More than 700 employees at a Detroit hospital system have tested positive for the coronavirus, highlighting an ongoing nationwide need for more personal protective equipment.
"They're heroic. They're showing up for work and they're doing the job," Duggan said of Detroit's health care workers. "Governor Whitmer has done a great job working across, really, around the world. They've got planes from China coming in to deliver equipment."
