Center in the News
The study, based on responses to the 2021 California Health Interview Survey, reveals that 1 in 10 adults in the state, or approximately 3 million people, faced difficulties in paying for housing this year. Renters, in particular, were more vulnerable, with 18.6% reporting struggles to pay their landlords, compared to only 5% of homeowners who faced similar difficulties. Housing instability was also an issue for 4.4% of California adults.
According to the California Health Interview Survey, from 2019 to 2021 about one-third of California youth ages 12-17 experienced serious psychological distress. Current law allows youth ages 12 and up to consent to outpatient mental health services without the consent of a parent or guardian, but that differs for youth who have Medi-Cal due to language in the Family Code.
Some 41% of Latino adults in California are unable to afford enough food, according to the UCLA California Health Interview Survey. Limited income creates limited food choices, leading to a reliance on cheap, processed, sugar-rich foods as well as a disconnect from traditional and healthier foodways.
Even before the shootings, more than two-thirds of Asian Americans in the state said they were worried about gun violence, the highest level among all racial groups, according to the 2021 California Health Interview Survey. Only one-third of whites, by contrast, responded similarly. Nearly half of Black and Asian American teens expressed concern about being victims of gun violence. Asian Americans have also expressed strong support for stricter gun laws.
The California Health Interview Survey has revealed an elevated prevalence of diabetes at 11.5% in the country, above the 10% in the state. Physical inactivity, a contributor of diabetes, is a health issue for almost a third of residents.
The report, done in collaboration with the group AAPI Data, builds on findings from UCLA's 2021 California Health Interview Survey and roughly 1,600 follow-on surveys conducted last year.
In a four-year California Health Interview Survey from 2017 to 2020, 45% of undocumented immigrants said they were affected by food insecurity, and the figure for those age 17 or younger was 64%
One-third of California’s middle and high school students experienced serious psychological distress between 2019 and 2021, according to the California Health Interview Survey, an annual statewide survey led by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. According to experts, those stakes are higher for LGBTQ+ students, many of whom relied on spaces like school-based gay-straight alliance clubs, or sessions led by LGBTQ+ focused nonprofit organizations, to support their mental health.
Researchers assessed data from 84,419 respondents in the 2015-18 California Health Interview Survey. They found that the rate of telehealth use among patients with LEP was 4.8 percent versus 12.3 percent among proficient English speakers.
In a California Health Interview Survey prepared by the county, 41.8 percent of San Diego residents age 65 and older had an income of 50k or less in 2021.