Early in the pandemic, epidemiologists noted a troubling trend: Due to higher rates of comorbidities, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals were experiencing a higher prevalence of health issues associated with severe COVID-19 infection than non-LGBT people. Given the longstanding challenges LGBT populations have faced accessing healthcare services and trusting the medical community — a USA Today report from late last year detailed the myriad ways that dated or erroneous HCP assumptions about LGBTQ patients influence their care — there was concern that members of these populations might pass on receiving a COVID vaccine.

Those worries may have been overstated. When researchers analyzed data from the National Immunization Survey Adult COVID Module, they found that vaccination coverage and confidence were greater among gay or lesbian adults than among heterosexual ones. At the same time, coverage and confidence lagged among non-Hispanic Black LGBT individuals. Here’s a closer look at the data.

LGBT
Click to enlarge.

Source: 2022 “COVID-19 vaccination coverage and vaccine confidence by sexual orientation and gender identity — U.S.,” the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Feb. 4, 2022.