Photo via Dallas County website’s coronavirus information section
The Centers for Disease Control released a new study this week that reported gay and lesbian adults have been vaccinated against COVID-19 at a higher rate than heterosexual adults. Data collected last fall show 85.4 percent of gays and lesbians had received at least one dose of a vaccine compared to 76.3 percent of heterosexuals.
The study said LGBTQ people are at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19 “because of a higher prevalence of co-morbidities.” Within the LGBTQ community, gender identity didn’t affect vaccination rate, but vaccine coverage was lowest among non-Hispanic Black LGBTQ persons.
The study notes that historically LGBTQ people have experienced challenges accessing, trusting and receiving health care. Instead, the study found LGBTQ adults were more confident in vaccine safety and effectiveness than heterosexual adults.
The group with the highest vaccination rate was white gay men living in an urban area. That group is 92.2 percent vaccinated compared to 88.3 percent of bisexual men and 76.6 percent of heterosexual men.
The CDC received 143,476 surveys that included a response to sexual orientation. Of those, 2.7 percent were gay or lesbian and 3.1 percent identified as bisexual.
— David Taffet
