April 17, 2020

Governor Jared Polis State Capitol Building 200 East Colfax Avenue, Room 136 , CO 80203

Dear Governor Polis,

We first thank you for your decision to start collecting data on race for all (past and future) COVID-19 cases. We believe that regardless of the color of our skin, the amount of money that’s in our wallets, and the neighborhood that we live in, we all deserve to be safe, healthy and protected in this time of crisis and beyond.

COVID-19 has laid bare the vast inequalities that plague the country and this state. We are witnessing the consequences of systems that for years have left communities of color behind, specifically Black and Brown communities. Economic inequality, lack of access to health care, over pollution and other factors continue to disproportionately hit communities of color. This is a systemic issue and we know that far too often Black, Brown, Native and Asian communities face the worst of the impacts from the crises that have hit this nation. COVID-19 is no exception. In states like Michigan, Louisiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and New York, African Americans are disproportionately dying - in some cases making up 70% of the COVID-19 related deaths. In a recent report by 7 News showed that neighborhoods in Denver with a higher population of Latino and Black residents have been hit the hardest by COVID-19.

While we are encouraged by your recent decision to begin to report data on race/ethnicity in all COVID-19 cases (past and future), we are asking you to do more by leading our state and the country in responding to the COVID-19 crisis through an equity lens. We are asking that you collect the type of data we need in order to paint a clear picture of the systems that disproportionately oppress communities of color.

This is a vital moment, one in which you as the Governor have the power to define the way our state responds to inequality and the disproportionate impact that this pandemic is having in communities of color. Colorado has the power to be an innovator and lead the country in moving to address the current crisis through an equity lens.

We the undersigned urge you, the Governor of Colorado to: - Collect and Report Coronavirus Data by Demographics. Data are a critical component to understanding the progression, spread, and containment measures needed in a public health crisis. As such we are requesting that the Governor direct the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing to release a variety of data on coronavirus. Specifically, age-adjusted rates per 100,000 by race/ethnicity on incidence, prevalence, mortality rates, screening rates, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions, readmission data, and cost of care. As a complement, we are requesting the State report the geographical distribution of these data and document “hotspots” by county, city, zip code, and/or census tract. We also ask for data on income to be collected and reported. These data are key to supporting the State and the public health community at-large to “define the problem” as well as containing the spread and target resources and interventions where they are most essential. - Create a Statewide Hotline for Workers. Increasingly workers are experiencing abuse from their employers and being threatened with possible loss of their job. It is critical that the state have a way to track employers who are not providing protective equipment to their employees or complying with the guidelines established by your administration and have a way to support workers who are risking their lives everyday during this pandemic. - Create a Statewide Hotline to Report Health Disparities. Discrimination in the medical environment is real and exists in Colorado. We know firsthand how bias within the medical setting leads to poor outcomes for people of color. Reports are coming in from across the country, and in Denver, that people of color are being turned away from hospitals and are less likely to be admitted when presenting with COVID-19 symptoms. This leads to higher ICU rates for people of color and higher morbidity rates. Colorado should create a statewide hotline, possibly 211, where people can report discrimination and trends can be reported to the appropriate hospital personnel to quickly rectify. This could save lives. - Establish a Cash Assistance Fund for those with an ITIN number. Undocumented Coloradans are on track to be completely devastated by the current crisis. It is critical that our state work to ensure that no Coloradan is left behind and that we provide the desperately needed support for those who will be left out of federal or state programs. We ask Governor Polis to immediately work to establish a cash assistance fund for those with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). - Create an Equity Response Team. Establish an Equity Committee within your Economic Stabilization and Growth Council. Due to the disproportionate impact that this pandemic is having in communities of color it is imperative that the state acts to have an analysis on the immediate and long-term impacts of this pandemic in communities of color. The committee should be tasked with coordinating services to ensure there is equitable access to vaccines and treatments, track the cost of hospitalizations and treatment, analyze the economic impact of the pandemic on communities of color, monitor the equitable distribution of recovery dollars for communities of color from state and national sources, and retrospectively examine the States response to determine lessons learned for future pandemic responses. - The committee should include representatives from different departments, non- profit leaders, minority owned businesses, and workers.

We appreciate your attention to the above demands.

In Solidarity,

Elected Officials , State Representative , State Representative , State Representative Jonathan Singer, State Representative , State Representative James Coleman, State Representative , MD, State Representative Chris Kennedy, State Representative , State Representative , State Representative , State Representative Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez, State Representative , State Representative Sr, State Representative , House of Representatives Majority Leader Janet Buckner, State Representative Sonya Jaquez Lewis, State Representative , State Representative Jovan Melton, State Representative Dafna Michaelson Janet, State Representative , State Representative Barbara McLachlan, State Representative Tracy Kraft-Tharp, State Representative Monica Duran, State Representative Donald E. Valdez, State Representative , State Representative , State Representative , State Representative Bri Buentello, State Representative , State Representative , State Representative , State Representative Johnathan Singer, State Representative Meg Frolich, State Representatives Julie McCluskie, State Representative , State Representative , State Representative , State Representative KC Becker, Speaker of House of Representatives Julie Gonzales, State Senator Brittany Pettersen, State Senator Robert Rodriguez, State Senator Crystal Murillo, Aurora City Council, Ward I Nicole Johnston, Aurora City Council, Ward II Juan Marcano, Aurora City Council, Ward IV Alison Coombs, Aurora City Council, Ward V Amanda P. Sandoval, Denver City Council, District 1 Jamie Torres, Denver City Council, District 3 Amanda Sawyer, Denver City Council District 5 Paul Kashmann, Denver City Council, District 6 Stacie Gilmore, Denver City Council District 11 Robin Kniech, Denver City Council At-Large Michal Rosenoer, Edgewater City Council

Organizations Colorado People’s Alliance (COPA) Together Colorado SEIU Local 105 9to5 Colorado United for a New Economy Padres & Jóvenes Unidos Colorado Working Families Party Colorado AFL-CIO Colorado Education Association Good Business Colorado Communication Workers of America Black Lives Matter 5280 American Friends Service Committee, Colorado Jefferson County Public Health Mi Familia Vota Sunrise Movement Colorado GRID Alternatives Colorado STRIDE Community Health Center Mothers Out Front – Colorado Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights (COLOR) Bell Policy Center Tri-County Health Network Vive Wellness Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition Small Town Project Clinica Tepeyac Colorado Association for School-Based Health Care Colorado Association of Local Public Health Officials National Parks Conservation Association Creative Action Collaborative Young Aspiring Americans for Social and Political Activism (YAASPA) Warm Cookies of the Revolution Interfaith Alliance of Colorado Adelante, the Latino Network for Health and Education Our Revolution Colorado Springs & CD5 Showing Up for Racial Justice Families of Boulder County Jefferson County Food Policy Council Center for Health Progress Denver Homeless Out Loud Colorado Fiscal Institute Colorado Consumer Health Initiative Chinook Fund New Era Colorado Aurora Chamber of Commerce Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition ACLU of Colorado Philanthropiece Aurora Community Connection Family Resource Center Colorado Society for Public Health Education Metro Denver Homeless Initiative (MDHI) Aurora Health Allience Colorado Children’s Campaign 350 Colorado Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) EarthLinks Free Spirit Consulting LLC Conservation Colorado SAG-AFTRA Colorado Local

Health Professionals Bilaal Ahmed Ariel Porto, MD Emma Mazzio Drew Allen Matt Guerrieri Dr. April Alexander, Clinical Assistant Professor, University of Denver Dr. Richard Broadhurst Nicholas Breitnauer, MD Telly Cheung, MD Shivani Kapur, MD Ronald J. Lauraschi, MD, MS Anne Frank, MD Lynne Rosenberg, MD Jeremy Hua, MD Jennifer Le Alex Cheetham Paula Maia Julie A. Venci, MD Hai Nguyen-Tran, MD Dr. Alexis Ball Nadia E. Hoekstra, MD Carolina Gutierrez Diana Whitney, MD