US: Vulnerable communities in urgent need of protection from the coronavirus

Since the start of the outbreak, MSF has received hundreds of inquiries from civil society organizations, local governments, and health care providers serving affected communities across the US seeking guidance on keeping staff and clients safe.

“In the US, state governments have taken the lead in the pandemic response, and there are vast disparities in access to services from one location to another,” said Jean Stowell, head of MSF’s COVID-19 team in the US. “Based on our own experience responding to infectious disease outbreaks around the world, MSF is helping organizations and health care providers in the US adapt and apply public health guidance according to the needs and resources available in their particular communities.”

In New York City, the current epicenter of the global pandemic, over 50,000 people sleep in homeless shelters each night. MSF is partnering with local organizations to improve infection prevention and control (IPC) measures in facilities serving people who are homeless or housing insecure. MSF has donated over 80 handwashing stations to places like soup kitchens and supportive housing facilities. A team is distributing 1,000 mobile phones to vulnerable New Yorkers who lack the essential technology needed to contact emergency and support services, including telemedicine providers. In addition, MSF has opened a temporary shower trailer in Manhattan, offering free showers to people who currently lack access to such facilities.

MSF has sent teams to assess local needs in several other areas where communities lack equitable access to COVID-19 response services, including in Puerto Rico, Florida, and among Native American communities in the southwest.