BUFFALO, NY (WKBW) — A new report was issued Thursday by the Erie County Office of Health Equity that documents important data surrounding health disparities and outcomes across Erie County.
"And we also know that marginalized communities and people of color from minority communities always have been denied access to fair and equitable health care,” stated April Basin, chairwoman, Erie County Legislature
A more than 300-page report finding health disparities across the county from urban to suburban to rural.
@markpoloncarz @ECDOH releasing a health equity report examining the disparities in our community. @WKBW pic.twitter.com/mEryT8iZsq
— Eileen Buckley (@eileenwkbw) May 30, 2024
"This report here is going to be very important. It is a very important tool to bring something that is a human right for every individual,” remarked Pastor George Nicholas, Buffalo Center for Health Equity.
Disparities in the Buffalo community were amplified and surfaced during the COIVD pandemic, Buffalo's racially motivated mass shooting at Tops two years ago, and then the December 2022 blizzard.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz pledged the report won’t sit on a shelf collecting dust with future action planned.
"If we issue the report and then it sits on the shelf and collects dust -- it was a waste of time -- this is not going to be a waste of,” declared Mark Poloncarz, Erie County Executive.
"You know, trust in that the health care system is going to do right by us. Trust in that people who don't look like us is going to be responsive to our needs,” replied Pastor George Nicholas, Buffalo Center for Health Equity.
More than 3,200 residents across Erie County filled out a health survey.
"We touched on zip codes. We went into every community we were in rural Erie. We were in urban Erie, we were in suburban Erie, listening to the people most affected by health disparities,” explained Kelly Wofford, director, Office of Health Equity, Erie County.
The report found several barriers that included language access, education, health care, neighborhoods where people live, social interactions, and a person's economic stability.
"I can take off work for cancer screening, but can I leave work and get to the doctor and be back in time to finish my job, can I also get my children, can I also take care of you know my elders like it's layered,” Wofford noted.
Wofford said everyone in the community must help in working to improve the disparities.
“This is an all-hands-on-deck issue,” Wofford said.
Pastor Nicholas is also calling on the community to get involved.
“I urge leadership, leadership in the Buffalo Club and corporate America, corporate Buffalo leadership and education, leadership around housing, and leadership in every element of our community, get this report and then see what role they can play in order to bring health equity within this region,” Pastor Nicholas stated.
The Office of Health Equity will hold a webinar for the community to see all the survey results on July 17th.
