Using Lorenz Curves to Measure Racial Inequities in COVID-19 Testing

Abstract

Racial disparities have been widely documented during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, but there has been limited focus on equitable allocation of the pandemic’s most critical but limited resource: COVID-19 testing. Equitable testing is paramount to a successful COVID-19 response and is essential for early case detection, self-isolation, and overall prevention of onward transmission.^1-3 We adapted a well-established tool for measuring inequity from economics—the Lorenz curve⁴—to put forth a metric for quantifying COVID-19 related inequities.