A new task force of the Albany County Legislature is working to ensure that people and communities of color are guaranteed effective services and improved access to better health care, nutrition and affordable housing.
The Legislature’s Minority Health and Equity Task Force was commissioned by Chairman Andrew Joyce in January and is led by Legislator Wanda Willingham, who also chairs the Legislature’s Audit and Finance Committee. The group was formed to review various issues in minority communities, including the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine which has struggled due to access issues and hesitancy among constituents.
Other areas that are being addressed include access to health care, crime, opportunities for youth, childcare availability, as well as housing and blight.
“The pandemic has shined a light on racial and ethnic health disparities. As we enact policies and implement strategies to end this pandemic, we also must take bold action to rebuild our healthcare system and public health infrastructure on a foundation of equity,” said Wanda Willingham, Chair of the Task Force.
“Local government provides the critical link between services and our most vulnerable populations,” Joyce said. “The mission of the Albany County Legislature's Health Equity Task Force is to not only identify health disparities and their underlying causes, but to recognize and end inequities across Albany County policies and procedures that may be widening these disparities. I thank our Deputy Chairwoman Wanda Willingham and Albany County Legislators Sam Fein, Raymond Joyce and Merton Simpson for serving as our co-chairs to lead this very important effort.”
The members of the Task Force have been compiling data about COVID-19 cases, income disparities, poverty levels, workforce demographics, unemployment rates, labor force participation and crime rates. The data is broken down by zip code to get a better understanding where different neighborhoods stand on these issues compared to the County as a whole.
The Task Force will then review County policies regarding training and make recommendations to programmatic shortfalls. In addition, the Task Force will review the yearly funding the County provides for social services, mental health, recreation and non-profits.
“We have a responsibility in government to change our policies to confront our long history of racial oppression and to address systemic racism that is entrenched in our policies and institutions,” Legislator Samuel Fein, a co-chair of the Task Force, said.
“The historic disparities in minority communities has been exacerbated during COVID. So we have to double our efforts because if it’s not addressed, it’s going to make the situation worse. The rate of vaccine distribution for example in minority communities is changing hour to hour and we may reach a point that the virus becomes immune to the vaccine. All we are striving for is equity,” Legislator Merton Simpson, co-chair, said.
The Task Force expects to begin wrapping up their work this summer with a final report released in September.
