{"doi":"10.17615/9c1x-m356","title":"Association of race, ethnicity, and housing stability with COVID-19 testing method by investigators in underserved populations 2020–2023","abstract":"Background Expanding SARS-CoV-2 testing was a critical part of community-based health efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the RADx-UP consortium, a large NIH-funded network of community-engaged researchers in the United States, investigators were able to choose between PCR- and antigen-based testing strategies in community-based research settings. Data analyzing how COVID-19 diagnostics are chosen and utilized in research of vulnerable and underserved populations is limited. Objectives To examine the association of race, ethnicity, and housing stability with a PCR- or antigen-based testing strategy within COVID-19 testing projects in the RADx-UP consortium. Methods Testing protocols and investigator survey data describing target populations for community-engaged research projects were analyzed for association between race, ethnicity, and housing stability with SARS-CoV-2 test type. Community-engaged research projects were included if they were funded and approved to use PCR- and/or antigen-based COVID-19 testing by the RADx-UP testing core between 2020 and 2023. Multivariable adjustment to assess for confounding was then performed using rurality, project size, pandemic phase, and census region.ResultsSixty-seven projects (representing 479,410 participants) were included in the analysis. Overall, 24 (36%) projects chose an antigen-only testing strategy compared to 43 (64%) that chose a PCR-based strategy. No significant differences in distribution were seen in inclusion of PCR-testing by race (16 of 21 for Black race versus 27 of 46 for non-Black race, p = 0.198), ethnicity (22 of 33 for Hispanic ethnicity versus 21 of 34 for non-Hispanic ethnicity, p = 0.765), or housing stability (10 of 17 for unstable housing versus 33 of 50 for stable housing, p = 0.728) within intended population. Conclusion Race, ethnicity, and housing stability of an underlying vulnerable population was not significantly associated with the decision by community investigators regarding which COVID-19 testing strategy was most appropriate. Future research efforts should remain vigilant to offer emerging diagnostic technologies in the most equitable and appropriate ways.","journal":"UNC Libraries","year":2025,"id":577447,"datarank":0.0,"base_score":0.0,"endowment":0.0,"self_citation_contribution":0.0,"citation_network_contribution":0.0,"self_endowment_contribution":0.0,"citer_contribution":0.0,"corpus_percentile":null,"corpus_rank":null,"citation_count":0,"citer_count":0,"citers_with_citation_signal":0,"citers_with_endowment":0,"datacite_reuse_total":0,"is_dataset":false,"is_dataset_confidence":0.8881,"is_data_producer":false,"deposit_databanks":null,"is_oa":true,"file_count":0,"downloads":0,"has_version_chain":false,"published_date":"2025-01-01","fair_score":null,"fair_percentile":null,"algorithm_id":"datarank_citation_only_1hop_v6","ranking_scope":"data_only","authors":[{"id":331061,"name":"Paul K. 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Perreira","orcid":"0000-0003-2906-0261","position":8,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":1102458,"name":"Lisa Gwynn","orcid":"0000-0003-2857-376X","position":9,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":3885,"name":"Susanna Naggie","orcid":"0000-0001-7721-6975","position":10,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":517316,"name":"L. Gayani Tillekeratne","orcid":"0000-0001-6012-7271","position":11,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":735870,"name":"Elizabeth Lydon","orcid":"0000-0002-4969-2269","position":12,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":357396,"name":"Timothy Veldman","orcid":null,"position":13,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":889389,"name":"Corinne McDaniels‐Davidson","orcid":"0000-0002-4062-7532","position":14,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":422575,"name":"Susan M. Kiene","orcid":"0000-0001-8922-5289","position":15,"is_corresponding":false},{"id":33039,"name":"Christopher W. Woods","orcid":"0000-0001-7240-2453","position":0,"is_corresponding":true}],"reference_count":0,"raw_metadata":null,"created_at":"2026-07-19T02:58:04.622308Z","pmid":null,"pmcid":null,"fwci":null,"citation_percentile":null,"influential_citations":0,"oa_status":null,"license":null,"views":0,"total_file_size_bytes":0,"version_count":0,"fair_f":null,"fair_a":null,"fair_i":null,"fair_r":null,"fair_zscore":null,"fair_rationale":null,"fair_model":null,"fair_agent_version":null,"fair_fulltext_source":null,"fair_has_llm":null,"fair_computed_at":null,"clinical_trials":[],"software_tools":[],"db_accessions":[],"linked_datasets":[],"topics":[]}