Hundreds of places in the US said racism was a public health crisis. What’s changed?
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AP Health Writer
More than 200 cities and counties declared racism was a public health crisis in the past few years, mostly after George Floyd was murdered by police in Minneapolis in May 2020. Racial justice advocates say they felt heard by the swell of political will to address disparities like disproportionate COVID-19 deaths or infant and maternal mortality rates. Some local health departments created improvement plans focused on racial equity. Other local governments turned the work over to task forces and consultants. Community organizers and public health advocates say not much has changed. Officials counter it’ll take more than a few years to undo structural and institutional racism.