Mental Health Experiences in 2021 for Adults With Disabilities Who Are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Transgender

• Published in: Rehabilitation psychology 2023-11, Vol.68 (4), p.374-384
• Main Authors: Brucker, Debra L., Surfus, Chris, Henly, Megan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bisexuality; COVID-19; Female; Human; Lesbianism; LGBTQ; Male; Mental Disorders; Mental Health; Pandemics
• ISSN: 0090-5550; 1939-1544
• DOI: 10.1037/rep0000511

Purpose/Objective: Examine the prevalence of mental health issues, receipt of mental health treatment, and self-reported unmet need for mental health treatment among U.S. adults with and without disabilities by lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) status during the pandemic. Research Method/Design: Logistic regression and predicted probabilities using nationally representative, cross-sectional, household survey data from the U.S. Census Bureau's weekly Household Pulse Survey conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic (July 21, 2021-October 11, 2021). Results: Controlling for age, educational attainment, employment, health insurance coverage, and race/ethnicity, adults with disabilities, regardless of LGBT status, had statistically significantly increased odds of having mental health issues, receiving mental health treatment, and reporting the unmet need for mental health treatment compared to adults without disabilities who were not LGBT. Adjusted rates of receipt of mental treatment ranged from a low of 9% for persons without disabilities who were not LGBT to 27% for persons with disabilities who were LGBT, a gap of 18 percentage points. An even larger percentage point gap (22 percentage points) was noted in the unmet need for treatment between persons without disabilities who were not LGBT (9%) and persons with disabilities who were LGBT (31%). Conclusions/Implications: These results highlight the need for expansions of the mental health service delivery system in the United States as well as a prioritization of accessibility and inclusiveness practices. Impact and Implications In 2021, U.S. adults with disabilities who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) experienced worse mental health and had higher levels of unmet need for mental health treatment than adults without disabilities who did not identify as LGBT. The mental health service delivery system in the United States needs to expand access to accessible and inclusive mental health treatment.