Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear announced proposals Monday in healthcare, education and law enforcement training that are aimed at addressing "systemic racism."
Protests over police treatment of African Americans have gone on for days in Kentucky and around the country.
"We are living through historic times, it actually seems like a lot of history is all happening at the same time," Beshear said during his daily briefing on the coronavirus.
Citing high rates of black victims of COVID-19 in Kentucky, Beshear said he would work to find health care coverage for all African Americans who call Kentucky home.
"The first goal that we have is to have 100% coverage, every single individual in our African American communities," he said.
The governor said that would likely be accomplished through a combination of Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance sign-ups. Beshear said black residents make up about 8% of Kentucky's population but have accounted for more than 16% of deaths.
Beshear also announced efforts in education and law enforcement training. A new eight-hour online law enforcement training course is being developed with an emphasis on implicit bias, use of force and civil rights laws.
The administration also proposed adding a nonvoting student to the state board of education, implicit bias training for educators and new efforts to recruit African Americans to teaching careers.
