Historic racism could be a factor behind the high coronavirus death rate among ethnic minorities, NHS bosses have reportedly found.
A Public Health England report seen by the BBC is said to have ruled that the crisis is "exacerbating existing inequalities".
The document, which has not been published, says racism and social inequality could explain why black, Asian and minority communities are more likely to die after contracting Covid-19.
Experts believe that people are less likely to seek care or demand proper personal protective equipment (PPE), the BBC reports.
The draft report also suggests that occupation could be a factor.
Inequality is another likely explanation, the report is said to have found, with disparities in conditions such as diabetes potentially linked to the higher death toll.
The BBC reports that stakeholders voiced "deep dismay, anger, loss and fear in their communities" - because data suggested coronavirus is "exacerbating existing inequalities".
The report also found that "historic racism and poorer experiences of healthcare or at work" put members of the BAME community at greater risk.
It reportedly concludes: "The unequal impact of Covid-19 on BAME communities may be explained by a number of factors ranging from social and economic inequalities, racism, discrimination and stigma, occupational risk, inequalities in the prevalence of conditions that increase the severity of disease including obesity, diabetes, hypertension and asthma."
Health chiefs have demanded legally-binding health assessments for BAME workers and better data collection around the impact of Covid-19.
They have also called for messaging about the virus to be more accessible for people who do not speak English as a first language.
A PHE review found people of Bangladeshi ethnicity had around twice the risk of death as people of white British ethnicity.
People of Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, other Asian, Caribbean and black ethnicity had between a 10% and 50% higher risk of death.
But despite agreeing that “black lives matter” Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced no immediate, specific action for those groups.
The Government instead kick-started a new review by Equalities minister Kemi Badenoch who confirmed it was too early to take direct action to help BAME people.
She told the House of Commons there was “incomplete data” in the Public Health England report, adding: “There was more that I would have been hoping to see.”
