While Black individuals experienced disproportionately increased firearm violence and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic, less is known about community level disparities. We sought to evaluate national community race and ethnicity differences in 2020 and 2021 rates of penetrating trauma.

We linked the 2018–2021 National Emergency Medical Services Information System databases to ZIP Code demographics. We stratified encounters into majority race/ethnicity communities (>50% White, Black, or Hispanic/Latino). We used logistic regression to compare penetrating trauma for each community in 2020 and 2021 to a combined 2018–2019 historical baseline. Majority Black and majority Hispanic/Latino communities were compared to majority White communities for each year. Analyses were adjusted for household income.

We included 87,504,097 encounters (259,449 penetrating traumas). All communities had increased odds of trauma in 2020 when compared to 2018–2019, but this increase was largest for Black communities (aOR 1.4, [1.3–1.4]; White communities – aOR 1.2, [1.2–1.3]; Hispanic/Latino communities – aOR 1.1. [1.1–1.2]). There was a similar trend of increased penetrating trauma in 2021 for Black (aOR 1.2, [1.2–1.3]); White (aOR 1.2, [1.1–1.2]); Hispanic/Latino (aOR 1.1, [1.1–1.1]). Comparing penetrating trauma in each year to White communities, Black communities had higher odds of trauma in all years (2018/2019 – aOR 3.0, [3.0–3.1]; 2020 – aOR 3.3, [3.3–3.4]; 2021 – aOR 3.3, [3.2–3.2]). Hispanic/Latino also had more trauma each year but to a lesser degree (2018/2019 – aOR 2.0, [2.0–2.0]; 2020 – aOR 1.8, [1.8–1.9]; 2021 – aOR 1.9, [1.8–1.9]).

Black communities were most impacted by increased penetrating trauma rates in 2020 and 2021 even after adjusting for income.