WEDNESDAY, July 29, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Hispanics and blacks are most likely to stay home if experiencing medical emergencies, like a heart attack or stroke, to avoid the risk of contracting COVID-19 at the hospital, according to a poll released by the American Heart Association (AHA).
The Harris Poll conducted the online survey of 2,050 adults on behalf of the AHA between May 29 and June 2, 2020.
According to the results of the survey, more than half of Hispanics (55 percent) said they would be scared to go to the hospital if they thought they were having a heart attack or stroke because they might get infected with COVID-19, and 41 percent said they would stay home if they thought they were experiencing a heart attack or stroke rather than risk getting infected at the hospital. Similarly, 45 percent of blacks said they would be scared and one-third would stay at home. In comparison, 40 percent of whites reported they would be scared and 24 percent of whites said they would stay at home.
"This finding is yet another challenge for black and Hispanic communities, who are more likely to have underlying health conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes and dying of COVID-19 at disproportionately high rates," Rafael Ortiz, M.D., an AHA volunteer medical expert and the chief of neuro-endovascular surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, said in a statement.
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