Prevalence of Pre-existing Conditions Among Community Health Center Patients With COVID-19: Implications for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Huguet, Nathalie; Schmidt, Teresa; Larson, Annie; O'Malley, Jean; Hoopes, Megan; Angier, Heather; Marino, Miguel; DeVoe, Jennifer

BACKGROUND Short- and long-term effects of COVID-19 will likely be designated pre-existing conditions. We describe the prevalence of pre-existing conditions among community health center patients overall and those with COVID-19 by race/ethnicity. MATERIALS AND METHODS This cross-sectional study used electronic health record data from OCHIN, a network of 396 community health centers across 14 states. RESULTS Among all patients with COVID-19, 33% did not have a pre-existing condition before the pandemic. Up to half of COVID-19-positive non-Hispanic Asians (51%), Hispanic (36%), and non-Hispanic black (28%) patients did not have a pre-existing condition before the pandemic. CONCLUSIONS The future of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is uncertain, and the long-term health effects of COVID-19 are largely unknown; therefore, ensuring people with pre-existing conditions can acquire health insurance is essential to achieving health equity.