LGBTQ Questionaire Data

Design: The Center for American Progress conducted a June 2020 survey of 1,528 LGBTQ-identifying individuals with assistance from NORC at the University of Chicago, using their AmeriSpeak panel. A sample of U.S. adults ages 18 and older who self-identified as LGBTQ was selected for this study. NORC’s TrueNorth calibration was used to adjust the weights for the nonprobability sample to bring weighted distributions of the nonprobability sample in line with the population distribution for characteristics correlated with the survey variables. CAP provided NORC with a survey questionnaire that NORC submitted for approval by an Institutional Review Board before programming the survey. NORC conducted a pretest and then fielded the survey over three weeks in June 2020. The full results of the study, along with a detailed overview of the methodology, are on file with the authors.

More about AmeriSpeak: AmeriSpeak is a probability-based panel designed to be representative of the U.S. household population. Randomly selected U.S. households are sampled using area probability and address-based sampling, with a known, nonzero probability of selection from the NORC National Sample Frame. These sampled households are then contacted by U.S. mail, telephone, and field interviewers (face to face). The panel provides sample coverage of approximately 97 percent of the U.S. household population. Those excluded from the sample include people with P.O. Box-only addresses, some addresses not listed in the U.S. Postal Service Delivery Sequence File, and some newly constructed dwellings. While most AmeriSpeak households participate in surveys by web, noninternet households can participate in AmeriSpeak surveys by telephone. Households without conventional internet access but with web access via smartphones are allowed to participate in AmeriSpeak surveys by web. AmeriSpeak panelists participate in NORC studies or studies conducted by NORC on behalf of governmental agencies, academic researchers, and media and commercial organizations.

Note: The majority of questions have had their wording altered slightly in the interest of clarity. For example, “[... nervous]. How often you had this feeling?” has been changed to read “In the past year, how often have you felt nervous?”

1. These questions were only asked of respondents who answered “Yes” to the question: “In the past year, have you experienced discrimination of any kind based on your race or ethnicity, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, economic status, immigration status, or age?”

2. Responses coded as “Yes” include all who provided at least one of the following responses to the question “In the past year, did you have any of the following experiences as a transgender person when you went see a doctor or health care provider?”

I had to teach my doctor or other health care provider about transgender people in order to get appropriate care.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to see me because of my actual or perceived gender identity.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to give me health care related to gender transition.
A doctor or other health care provider was visibly uncomfortable with me because of my actual or perceived gender identity.
A doctor or other health care provider intentionally misgendered me or used the wrong name.
A doctor or other health care provider used harsh or abusive language when treating me.
A doctor or other health care provider was physically rough or abusive when treating me.
I experienced unwanted physical contact from a doctor or other health care provider.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to assist me in forming a family because of my actual or perceived gender identity.

3. These questions were only asked of transgender respondents.

4. Responses coded as “Yes” include all who provided at least one of the following responses to the question “In the past year, did you have any of the following experiences as a gay, lesbian, queer, or bisexual person when you went to see a doctor or health care provider?”

I had to teach my doctor or other health care provider about gay, lesbian, or bisexual people in order to get appropriate care.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to see me because of my actual or perceived sexual orientation.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to give me health care related to my actual or perceived sexual orientation.
A doctor or other health care provider was visibly uncomfortable with me because of my actual or perceived sexual orientation.
A doctor or other health care provider intentionally refused to recognize my family, including a child or a same-sex spouse or partner.
A doctor or other health care provider used harsh or abusive language when treating me.
A doctor or other health care provider was physically rough or abusive when treating me.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to treat my family member, including a child or a same-sex spouse or partner, because of my actual or perceived sexual orientation.
I experienced unwanted physical contact from a doctor or other health care provider.
A doctor or other health care provider refused to assist me in forming a family because of my actual or perceived sexual orientation.

5. These questions were only asked of respondents who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or queer.

6. Responses were consolidated into larger groupings:

“Military” includes VA health insurance and TRICARE.
“Employer-based” includes individuals who receive insurance from their own employers and those receiving insurance from a spouse or family member’s employer.
“Nongroup health coverage” includes those who purchased a plan from a health insurance marketplace, those who reported purchasing directly from an insurer, and those who responded “Other.”
“Uninsured” includes respondents who reported not having insurance and those who reported that their insurance came through the Indian Health Service.

7. Responses coded as “Yes” include all who provided at least one of the following responses to the question “In the past year, have you had any of the following experiences with a health insurance company?”

A health insurance company denied me hormone therapy for transition.
A health insurance company denied me surgery for transition.
A health insurance company covers only some of the surgical care I need for my transition.
A health insurance company covers surgery for transition, but has no surgery providers in their network.

8. Responses were consolidated into larger groupings:

“Not employed” includes those on temporary layoffs and those looking for work.
“Not in labor force” includes those who reported that they were retired, those who reported not working due to disability, and those who responded that they were not working for a reason not listed.

9. “Not in labor force” includes individuals who are retired, those who are not working due to a disability, and those who reported not working for some other reason.