LGBTQ+ adults are hit harder by higher rates of food and economic insecurity, according to US Census Bureau data.
For a historic first time, the Census Bureau issued Household Pulse Survey (HPS) asked applicants about sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI).
In a collection of three questions, the survey enabled researchers to the experiences of the LGBTQ+ population to adults past and present.
The collected data revealed over 13 per cent of LGBTQ+ adults lived in a household where there was “sometimes or often not” enough to eat in the past seven days.
In comparison, the study showed 7.2 per cent of non-LGBTQ+ adults faced a similar situation.
Other key data spotlighted the difficulties LGBTQ+ adults had in paying household expenses, managing mortgages and employment issues.
More than 36 per cent of American LGBTQ+ adults lived in a household that had difficulty paying for usual household expenses in the previous seven days.
Nearly 20 per cent of LGBTQ+ adults lived in a household with lost employment income in the past four weeks.
The HPS data also demonstrated that just under 10 per cent of LGBTQ+ American adults living in “rented or owned with a mortgage or loan” homes, were not “confident” they would be able to make their next housing payment.
The three LGBTQ+ angled questions, participants were asked included “What sex were you assigned at birth on your original birth certificate?” and “Do you currently describe yourself as male, female or transgender?”.
The third included question was “Which of the following best represents how you think of yourself?” which offered a selection of possible answers, including: “Gay or lesbian; Straight, that is not gay or lesbian; Bisexual; Something else; I don’t know.”
The United Census Bureau states the HPS is designed to “provide near real-time data on how the pandemic has affected people’s lives.”
To achieve this kind of scale, the Bureau sent invitations to over a million households and received a total of 64,562 responses.
Following the survey, data releases will continue every two weeks until October 11.
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