A study has found that the gay and lesbian communities in the United States have a higher rate of COVID-19 vaccinations than their heterosexual counterparts.
The report, from the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, stated: “Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons are at increased risk for severe COVID-19 illness because of a higher prevalence of comorbidities.”
It revealed that gay men and lesbians aged 18 and over were vaccinated with at least one dose of a COVID-19 jab at a rate of 85.4% compared with 76.3% of their heterosexual counterparts.
This was mirrored when it came to confidence in the vaccines, as 76% of gay or lesbian adults stated that they were either completely or very confident in its effectiveness compared with just 64% of heterosexual respondents.
The report found that bisexual adults believed getting a COVID-19 vaccination was somewhat or very important at a rate of 87% compared with more than 90% of gay or lesbians. Gay men were found to be vaccinated at a rate of almost 89% versus nearly 81% of lesbian women.
Vaccination rates within the LGBTQ+ community were lowest among Black people across all categories of sexual orientation and gender identity, with the proportion of trans adults getting more than one dose being in line with cisgender adults at 76% and 77%, respectively.
The study found no “significant differences” in vaccination rates when breaking down the data by gender identity.
The study from the CDC collected data from more than 150,000 respondents in America from August and October 2021. Read the full report here.