Sexual minorities are more likely to be unemployed, to lack health insurance, and to report being in poorer health and having a lower quality of life than their heterosexual peers, according to a new study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
“Our findings highlight the ubiquity of sexual orientation inequalities in the employment and healthcare systems,” said Brittany Charlton, assistant professor in the Department of Epidemiology and lead author of the study, in a July 26, 2018 Reuters Health article.
The researchers analyzed data from nearly 10,000 adults aged 18-32 who participated in a long-running study that collected information on a host of lifestyle, health, and environmental factors in annual surveys.
Among the findings: For bisexual women, the odds of being uninsured were nearly four times those of their straight counterparts. Gay men were almost 50% more likely, and gay women 84% more likely, to be unemployed due to illness or disability.
Read the Reuters Health article: LGBT adults in U.S. less likely to have jobs, health insurance