Slow internet? How digital redlining hurts people of all ages

As schools now explore virtual education and hospitals expand to digital platforms as viable and safe options during the time of COVID-19, the focus on adequate internet access has moved to center stage. In 2018, rural North Dakota residents had access to better internet service than residents of Englewood in Chicago. A recent report showed that in some parts of Chicago, as many as half of children lack the necessary access to broadband needed to engage in the online educational activities expected of them during the COVID-19 academic disruption.

In general, communities of color are less likely to have access to broadband than predominantly white communities and instead rely on smartphones or library computers for access to online services. Smartphones are an option, but libraries may be inaccessible due to travel limitations and do not provide individuals with the privacy needed for some sensitive online interactions, such as medical consultations. On top of that, many libraries have been closed during the pandemic. We have seen some of the consequences of these disparities; communities that lack broadband internet are also less likely to use telemedicine services. After COVID-19, the number of telemedicine visits for Medicare enrollees surged from 13,000 to 1.7 million patients. However, lower income individuals are less likely to use video telemedicine service as compared to others.

It is important that high-speed internet be available to communities in households regardless of age across the city. The elderly rely on it to connect with the outside world for their safety, security and general well-being. This is a problem now as has been since the emergence of broadband in the city. Communities of color should not have to sit by idly and “wait our turn.” Our turn is now. Our quality of life depends on it.

[Janice Blanchard, M.D., Ph.D., is a professor of emergency medicine at the George Washington University. Anita Blanchard, M.D., is a professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and associate dean of Graduate Medical Education at the University of Chicago.]