REACH-OUT: Race, Ethnicity, and Air Pollution in COVID-19 Hospitalization OUTcomes

This report, available for downloading below, presents a study led by Jeanette A. Stingone at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Stingone and colleagues evaluated whether associations between long-term air pollution exposures and severe COVID-19 health outcomes varied by New York City neighborhoods that differed in environmental vulnerability, as defined by social and structural characteristics.

Key takeaways:

• Long-term exposures to black carbon, fine particulate matter, and nitrogen dioxide, but not ozone, were associated with risk of being admitted to the hospital with a COVID-19 diagnosis among those who went to the emergency department.
• By contrast, results for risk of pneumonia, need for mechanical ventilation, and death among hospitalized patients with a COVID-19 diagnosis were mixed across pollutants and outcomes.
• Neighborhood vulnerability consistently elevated the risk of being admitted to the hospital with a COVID-19 diagnosis after visiting the emergency department, but this modifying effect was not consistent for other health outcomes.
• Overall, this study demonstrates the complexity of the relationship among air pollution, COVID-19, and neighborhood vulnerability. It highlights the need for additional research to better understand this relationship in the context of future respiratory infectious disease outbreaks.