Understanding COVID-19 Testing among Underserved Communities in MN

Minnesota has experienced a steady increase in COVID-19 cases which is disproportionately affecting the African American, Latinx, and American Indian communities. An ambitious testing program, which includes a partnership of the University of Minnesota, the Minnesota Department of Public Health, and the Mayo Clinic, has been unveiled with a capacity to test 15,000 people a day. The testing, however, is underutilized and there’s an urgency to test symptomatic individuals, particularly in vulnerable communities, as soon as possible. Although several hypotheses have been raised as to why testing take-up is low, we seek immediate funds to identify the most important barriers to testing and potential community leaders to effectively disseminate vital information. With this established, we then plan to rapidly build up a randomized intervention to improve testing take up.