Disparities in COVID-19 Outcomes: Understanding the Root Causes Is Key to Achieving Equity.

To eliminate disparities in COVID-19-related health outcomes, the collective actions must be intentional in 3 key areas: (1) access to health care;(2) social and structural determinants of health;and (3) structural and institutional racism. Fundamental to the success of this work is the need to have public dashboards with data by race/ethnicity and geography that not only create accountability for public health and elected officials but also allow private industry, health care providers, community-based organisations, and citizen scientists to contribute innovative solutions to the whole of community response. Disparities and inequities in health are not caused by one single factor and as such cannot be eliminated by a single intervention. Similarly, the root causes of disparities in any health indicator, including COVID-19, are multifactorial and require both short and long-term interventions. The most sustainable impact will be achieved through the long-term interventions and investments that address the social and structural determinants of health-those that are designed to achieve equity-granting us all the opportunity to achieve the best health.