COVID-Related Discrimination and Health Care Access among a Nationally Representative, Diverse Sample of US Adults.

Background: In the United States, COVID-related discrimination towards racial and ethnic minority populations is well documented; however, its impact on healthcare access during the pandemic has not been assessed.

Methods: We used data from our nationally representative, online survey of 5,500 American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN), Asian, Black, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Latino, White, and multiracial adults conducted between 12/2020-2/2021 (baseline) and 8/2021-9/2021 (6-month follow-up; 35.1% response rate).

Direct and Vicarious Experiences of COVID-19-Related Racism Across Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States.

Objectives: Due to stigmatization associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, certain groups were believed to be the cause of COVID-19 and thus experienced COVID-19-related racism through direct interpersonal and vicarious experiences. This study used quantitative and qualitative responses to examine whether the prevalence of experiencing these types of racism varied across racial and ethnic groups.

Study Design: This cross-sectional study included 5,480 participants in the REACH-US (Race-Related Experiences Associated with COVID-19 and Health in the United States) study, which is a nationally representative survey administered to 5,500 U.

Motivators and Barriers to COVID-19 Vaccination Intentions Across U.S. County-Level Barriers in the COVID-19 Vaccine Coverage Index.

Background: County-level barriers (sociodemographic barriers, limited healthcare system resources, healthcare accessibility barriers, irregular healthcare seeking behaviors, low vaccination history) may impact individuals' reasons for receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.

Methods: This study linked data from REACH-US (Race-Related Experiences Associated with COVID-19 and Health in the United States), a nationally representative, online survey of 5475 adults living in the U.S (January-March 2021) to county-level barriers in the COVID-19 Vaccine Coverage Index.

Patient Lung Cancer Screening Decisions and Environmental and Psychosocial Factors.

Importance: Screening for lung cancer using low-dose computed tomography is associated with reduced lung cancer-specific mortality, but uptake is low in the US; understanding how patients make decisions to engage with lung cancer screening is critical for increasing uptake. Prior research has focused on individual-level psychosocial factors, but environmental factors (eg, historical contexts that include experiencing racism) and modifying factors-those that can be changed to make it easier or harder to undergo screening-also likely affect screening decisions.

Objective: To investigate environmental, psychosocial, and modifying factors influencing lung cancer screening decision-making and develop a conceptual framework depicting relationships between these factors.

Racial/ethnic differences in the associations between trust in the U.S. healthcare system and willingness to test for and vaccinate against COVID-19.

Background: Trust in the healthcare system may impact adherence to recommended healthcare practices, including willingness to test for and vaccinate against COVID-19. This study examined racial/ethnic differences in the associations between trust in the U.S.

Perceptions of Racial-Ethnic Inequities in COVID-19 Healthcare and Willingness to Receive the COVID-19 Vaccine.

Background: Perceptions of the US healthcare system can impact individuals' healthcare utilization, including vaccination intentions. This study examined the association between perceived racial-ethnic inequities in COVID-19 healthcare and willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Methods: This study used data from REACH-US, a nationally representative online survey of a large, diverse sample of U.

Racial and Ethnic Discrimination and Hypertension by Educational Attainment Among a Cohort of US Women.

Importance: Although understudied, there are likely within-group differences among minoritized racial and ethnic groups in associations between racial and ethnic discrimination (RED) and hypertension risk, as minoritized individuals with higher educational attainment may more frequently encounter stress-inducing environments (eg, professional workplace settings, higher-income stores and neighborhoods) characterized by, for instance, exclusion and antagonism.

Objectives: To investigate educational attainment as a potential effect modifier of associations between RED and hypertension risk among US women; the study hypothesis was that the magnitude of associations would be stronger among participants with higher vs lower educational attainment.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This is a nested case-control study using Sister Study data collected at enrollment (2003-2009) and over follow-up visits until September 2019.

Opportunities, challenges, and future directions for simulation modeling the effects of structural racism on cancer mortality in the United States: a scoping review.

Purpose: Structural racism could contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in cancer mortality via its broad effects on housing, economic opportunities, and health care. However, there has been limited focus on incorporating structural racism into simulation models designed to identify practice and policy strategies to support health equity. We reviewed studies evaluating structural racism and cancer mortality disparities to highlight opportunities, challenges, and future directions to capture this broad concept in simulation modeling research.

County-level barriers in the COVID-19 vaccine coverage index and their associations with willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine across racial/ethnic groups in the U.S.

Background: County-level vaccination barriers (sociodemographic barriers, limited healthcare system resources, healthcare accessibility barriers, irregular healthcare seeking behaviors, history of low vaccination) may partially explain COVID-19 vaccination intentions among U.S. adults.

Impact of COVID-related Discrimination on Psychological Distress and Sleep Disturbances across Race-Ethnicity.

COVID-related discrimination towards historically marginalized racial-ethnic groups in the United States has been well-documented; however, its impact on psychological distress and sleep (overall and within specific racial-ethnic groups) is largely unknown. We used data from our nationally representative, online survey of 5,500 American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Latino, White, and multiracial adults, conducted from 12/2020-2/2021. Participants were asked how often they experienced discriminatory behaviors "because they think you might have COVID-19" (modified Everyday Discrimination Scale).

Discrimination Experiences and All-Cause and Cardiovascular Mortality: Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Background: Epidemiologic studies have documented the associations between experiences of discrimination and adverse health outcomes. However, the relationship between discrimination and mortality, and the factors that may moderate this relationship are not well understood. This study examined whether lifetime and everyday discrimination were associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality and whether these associations differed by race and ethnicity, gender, and racial and ethnic residential segregation.

College students' underlying perceptions of COVID-19 threat, healthcare discrimination, and healthcare system inequities associated with self-rated health across racial/ethnic groups in the U.S.

Background: COVID-19-related health perceptions may differentially impact college students' stress, and in turn, their mental and physical health. This study examined racial/ethnic differences in college students' underlying perceptions of COVID-19 threat, healthcare discrimination, and U.S.

Perceived COVID-19 threat, perceived healthcare system inequities, personal experiences of healthcare discrimination and their associations with COVID-19 preventive behavioral intentions among college students in the U.S.

College students are often reluctant to follow U.S. preventive guidelines to lower their risk of COVID-19 infection, despite an increased risk of transmission in college settings.

Hypertension and Diabetes Status by Patterns of Stress in Older Adults From the US Health and Retirement Study: A Latent Class Analysis.

Background Hypertension and diabetes disproportionately affect older non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic adults in the United States. Chronic stress may partially explain these disparities. This study identified underlying stress profiles of older US adults, analyzed stress profiles in relation to hypertension and diabetes, examined the distribution of stress profiles by race and ethnicity, and assessed patterns of change in latent classes of stress over time.

Associations between perceived discrimination and immune cell composition in the Jackson Heart Study.

African American adults suffer disproportionately from several non-communicable and infectious diseases. Among numerous contributing factors, perceived discrimination is considered a stressor for members of historically marginalized groups that contributes to health risk, although biological pathways are incompletely understood. Previous studies have reported associations between stress and both an up-regulation of non-specific (innate) inflammation and down-regulation of specific (adaptive) immunity.

COVID-19-Related Discrimination Among Racial/Ethnic Minorities and Other Marginalized Communities in the United States.

To determine the prevalence of COVID-19-related discrimination among major US racial/ethnic groups and estimate associations between discrimination, race/ethnicity, and other sociodemographic characteristics. We conducted a nationally representative online survey of 5500 American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Black/African American, Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Latino (English and Spanish speaking), White, and multiracial adults from December 2020 to February 2021. Associations between sociodemographic characteristics and COVID-19-related discrimination were estimated via multinomial logistic regression.

Everyday discrimination and cancer metaphor preferences: The mediating effects of needs for personal significance and cognitive closure.

Metaphors are often used to describe cancer experiences (e.g., battle, journey).

Experiences With Everyday and Major Forms of Racial/Ethnic Discrimination and Type 2 Diabetes Risk Among White, Black, and Hispanic/Latina Women: Findings From the Sister Study.

Racial/ethnic discrimination may contribute to the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), but few studies have prospectively examined this relationship among racially/ethnically diverse populations. We analyzed prospective data from 33,833 eligible Sister Study participants enrolled from 2003 to 2009. In a follow-up questionnaire (2008-2012), participants reported their lifetime experiences of everyday and major forms of racial/ethnic discrimination.

The role of perceived discrimination in predicting changes in health behaviours among African Americans in the Jackson Heart Study.

Background: This study examined whether perceived discrimination was associated with health behaviours over time and whether associations of discrimination with behaviours varied by attribution of discrimination.

Methods: Multinomial logistic regression was used to estimate ORs and CIs for the associations of discrimination (everyday, lifetime, stress from lifetime discrimination) with health behaviours (cigarette smoking, alcohol use) over time among 3050 African Americans in the Jackson Heart Study from visit 1 (2000-2004) to visit 3 (2009-2013). Smoking status was classified as persistent current, persistent former, persistent never, current to former and former/never to current smokers.

Perceived Discrimination and Hypertension Risk Among Participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Background Black Americans have a higher risk of hypertension compared with White Americans. Perceived discrimination is a plausible explanation for these health disparities. Few studies have examined the impact of perceived discrimination on the incidence of hypertension among a racially diverse sample.

Optimism is associated with chronic kidney disease and rapid kidney function decline among African Americans in the Jackson Heart Study.

Objective: Investigate the association of dispositional optimism with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and rapid kidney function decline (RKFD) and determine if there is modification by age, sex, and educational attainment among African Americans.

Methods: Optimism was measured using the 6-item Life Orientation Test-Revised scale (categorized into tertiles and log transformed) among participants from the Jackson Heart Study (n = 1960). CKD was defined as the presence of albuminuria or reduced glomerular filtration rate of <60 mL/min/1.

Discrimination and Hypertension Risk Among African Americans in the Jackson Heart Study.

African Americans have a higher risk of hypertension compared with other racial or ethnic groups in the United States. One possible explanation for this disparity is discrimination. Few studies have examined the association between discrimination and incidence of hypertension.

The weathering hypothesis as an explanation for racial disparities in health: a systematic review.

Purpose: The weathering hypothesis states that chronic exposure to social and economic disadvantage leads to accelerated decline in physical health outcomes and could partially explain racial disparities in a wide array of health conditions. This systematic review summarizes the literature empirically testing the weathering hypothesis and assesses the quality of the evidence regarding weathering as a determinant of racial disparities in health.

Methods: Databases (Web of Science, Ovid MEDLINE, PubMed, and Embase) were searched for studies published in English up to July 1, 2017.

Sex differences in the association between perceived stress and adiposity in a nationally representative sample.

Purpose: Prior studies examining the association between perceived stress and adiposity have reported mixed findings, and sex differences have largely not been examined.

Methods: We examined the relationship between perceived stress and body mass index (BMI) and waist circumference in young adults in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Participants (mean age 29 years; N = 14,044) completed the short form of Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale during a home visit.