COVID-19 and Asian Americans: Reinforcing the Role of Community-Based Organizations in Providing Culturally and Linguistically Centered Care

Introduction: Community-based organizations (CBOs) have provided critical resources during the pandemic, particularly for marginalized communities, and are trusted liaisons who connect socially and linguistically isolated community members, such as the highly diverse Asian American population, to care during public health emergencies. Stereotypes such as the model minority myth have permeated public perception of Asian Americans' health status and health care access needs, fueling widespread belief that Asian Americans do not experience health disparities, and mask the high rates of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection, hospitalization, and mortality among Asian Americans. The unequal burden of COVID-19 on Asian American communities has largely remained absent from the public health and national discourse, with exceptions such as community voices that have directed news media coverage and leading roles of CBOs in offering culturally adapted, in-language programming on COVID-19 infection prevention and control.Methods: CBOs and their staff are well-equipped with the cultural acuity, language capacity, and familiarity with local norms to improve structural gaps affecting health outcomes and support health care delivery.Results: We discuss the roles and responsibilities of CBOs in strengthening the health care workforce and expanding community-clinic linkages and provide two case studies illustrating the efforts of two community organizations serving Asian American and immigrant communities, who have been disproportionally affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.Discussion: CBOs are essential to supporting health service coordination and care delivery for structurally vulnerable populations, and are vital to sustaining the coordinated, multilevel public health response to improving community health.Conclusion: Bolstering the current infrastructure to support CBOs is necessary to facilitating immediate responses to serve community needs.