How local COVID-19 rules and supports affected mental health and access to care across racial and income groups
Official title: The Impacts of County-Level COVID- 19 -Related Public Health and Social Policies on Racial/Ethnic and Socioeconomic Disparities in Mental Health and Healthcare Utilization
Funded at Harvard University D/b/a Harvard School of Public Health · NIH-11159776 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether county-level COVID policies and economic supports changed mental health and health care use for adults from different racial and income backgrounds.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Harvard University D/b/a Harvard School of Public Health NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | August 5, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $731,831 |
| NIH project number | 5U01MH129968-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11159776 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults (21+) who live in the included U.S. counties, especially Black, Latinx, and lower-income residents concerned about pandemic-related mental health or access to care, are the populations this work focuses on.
✕Less likely to help
People under age 21 or those living outside the sampled counties are unlikely to see direct benefits from this specific county-level analysis.
What this research studies
Researchers will collect detailed information on COVID-related public health orders and social policies in about 250 U.S. counties for 2020–2021 and link those county rules to national survey and health-use data. They will use surveys like the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and other health records to measure symptoms of anxiety, depression, and patterns of health care use across groups. The team will compare outcomes for people of different races and income levels to see which local policies coincided with smaller or larger disparities. Analyses will aim to separate the effects of restrictive measures (like closures) from economic supports (like cash aid) on mental health and access to services.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could help local leaders design policies that protect mental health and health care access for low-income and racial minority adults during public health emergencies.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work at the state level has linked COVID policies to health and mental health disparities, but county-level analyses like this are less common and add more local detail.
Where this research is happening
-
Harvard University D/b/a Harvard School of Public Health
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hamad, Rita — Harvard University D/b/a Harvard School of Public Health
- Study coordinator: Hamad, Rita
Related research
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Examining how local COVID-19 policies affect mental health and healthcare access among different racial and socioeconomic groups.
This study looks at how different public health rules during the COVID-19 pandemic affected the mental health and healthcare access of people, especially those from Black and Latinx communities, to see how these rules helped or hurt them in 250 counties across the U.S.
-
Community-based mental health support for Latinx immigrants and African refugees affected by COVID-19
This study is looking to help Latinx immigrants and African refugees who have been struggling because of the COVID-19 pandemic by providing support through a peer advocacy program and working with local organizations to improve access to resources, all while checking in over six months to see how well these efforts are
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.