Research conducted by Mental Health America found the following:
Demographics/Societal Issues
Among U.S. adults, 4.5 percent identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender.
LGBT identification is lower as age increases; 8.2 percent of Millennials (born between 1980 and 1999) identify as LGBT, compared to 3.5 percent of Generation X individuals (born between 1965 and 1979).
Women are more likely to identify as LGBT than men (5.1 percent compared to 3.9 percent).
Research suggests that LGBTQ+ individuals face health disparities linked to societal stigma, discrimination, and denial of their civil and human rights. Discrimination against LGBTQ+ persons has been associated with high rates of psychiatric disorders, substance abuse, and suicide.
Personal, family, and social acceptance of sexual orientation and gender identity affects the mental health and personal safety of LGBT individuals.
Attitudes
A majority of LGBTQ+ people say that they or an LGBTQ+ friend or family member have been threatened or non-sexually harassed (57 percent), been sexually harassed (51 percent), or experienced violence (51 percent) because of their sexuality or gender identity.
Fifty-nine percent of LGBTQ+ people feel that they have fewer employment opportunities and 50 percent believe they are paid less than non-LGBTQ+ people.
Thirty-eight percent of transgender people say they have experienced slurs and 28 percent have experienced insensitive or offensive comments because of their gender identity or sexual orientation.
Twenty-two percent of transgender individuals say they have avoided doctors or health care out of concern they would be discriminated against.
Prevalence
LGBTQ+ teens are six times more likely to experience symptoms of depression than non-LGBTQ+ identifying teens.
LGBTQ+ youth are more than twice as likely to feel suicidal and over four times as likely to attempt suicide compared to heterosexual youth.
Forty-eight percent of transgender adults report that they have considered suicide in the last year, compared to 4 percent of the overall US population.
Access/Insurance
In a survey of LGBTQ+ people, more than half of all respondents reported that they have faced cases of providers denying care, using harsh language, or blaming the patient’s sexual orientation or gender identity as the cause for an illness. Fear of discrimination may lead some people to conceal their sexual orientation or gender identity from providers or avoid seeking care altogether.
In 2011, the Joint Commission, an independent non-profit national organization that accredits and certifies more than 20,000 health care organizations and programs in the U.S., began to require that hospitals prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in order to be accredited.
Treatment Issues
Approximately 8 percent of LGBTQ+ individuals and nearly 27 percent of transgender individuals report being denied needed health care outright.
In mental health care, stigma, lack of cultural sensitivity, and unconscious and conscious reluctance to address sexuality may hamper effectiveness of care.
Evidence suggests that implicit preferences for heterosexual people versus lesbian and gay people are pervasive among heterosexual health care providers.
Most LGBTQ+ individuals are incredibly resilient and will thrive in the face of adversity with the help of supportive families, communities, and peers. It is essential that EVERYONE lives an authentic life. The LGBTQ+ community deserves affirmed, safe, supported, joyful, and mentally healthy lives.