Gonzales’ Study Shows Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage Increased Care Access
Vanderbilt researchers have documented evidence that legalizing same-sex marriage has improved access to health care for gay men in a study released as a National Bureau of Economic Research working paper this week.
This is one of the first studies to examine the effect legal marriage has on the health of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals.
“We found that lesbian, gay, or bisexual adults were more likely to get married after having access to legal same-sex marriage, and for men, that is associated with a statistically significant increase in the probability that they have health insurance, have a usual source of care, and have a routine health check-up,” said co-author Gilbert Gonzales Jr., PhD, assistant professor of Health Policy.