A report by HUD staff Veronica E. Helms, Jon Sperling, and Barry L. Steffen, A Health Picture of HUD-Assisted Adults, finds that a higher proportion of HUD-assisted adults are seniors or single-parents, self-report their health as fair or poor, and have diagnosed health problems than unassisted low-income renters and the general adult population. The study did not adjust for age, and because HUD-assisted renters are more likely to be older, the age distribution within these three groups may influence the comparison. Nonetheless, the study provides a useful description of the health status of HUD-assisted low income renters.
The report compared the sociodemographic characteristics and health status of three groups of adults at least 18 years of age: HUD-assisted renters, unassisted low-income renters, and the general adult population. Twenty-four percent of HUD-assisted adults were seniors at least 62 years of age, compared to 8% of unassisted low-income renters and 21% of the general adult population. Nearly 25% of HUD-assisted renters were single adults with children, compared to 12% of unassisted low-income renters and 4% of the general adult population. Seventy-four percent of HUD-assisted adults were female, compared to 56% of unassisted low-income renters and 52% of the general adult population.
HUD-assisted adults had a greater prevalence of health challenges as measured by self-reported health status, emergency room (ER) visits during the past 12 months, weight, and diagnosed health conditions. Thirty-six percent of HUD-assisted adults reported fair or poor health, compared to 24% of unassisted low-income renters and 14% of the general adult population. A higher proportion of HUD-assisted tenants reported utilizing the ER two or more times during the past year (23%) than unassisted low-income renters (18%) and the general adult population (9%). Seventy-one percent of HUD-assisted adults were overweight or obese, compared to 64% of the general adult population and 59% of unassisted low-income renters. HUD-assisted adults also had a higher prevalence of diagnosed health conditions: hypertension, heart disease, cancer, liver condition, kidney condition, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, and complete tooth loss. The greater share of seniors in the HUD-assisted population likely accounts for some of the health disparities, and the well-established connection between health and poverty likely accounts for some of the disparities between HUD-assisted renters and the general population. HUD-assisted adults also faced higher rates of serious psychological distress and mental hardship.
With the exception of dental care, HUD-assisted renters indicated higher health care utilization than unassisted low-income renters and the general adult population. Seventeen percent of both HUD-assisted renters and the general adult population did not have health insurance, compared to 32% of unassisted low-income renters. HUD-assisted renters were more likely to have visited a general doctor in the past year (72%) than the general population (68%) or unassisted low-income renters (58%) and were more likely to have visited a specialist (30%) than the general adult population (28%) or unassisted low-income renters (20%). Unassisted low-income renters were more likely to have no usual source of medical care (27%) than HUD-assisted renters (12%) or the general population (16%). Forty-four percent of HUD-assisted renters had a dental visit in the past year, compared to 60% of the general adult population and 43% of unassisted low-income renters.
This report linked HUD administrative records with data from the National Health Interview Survey.
A Health Picture of HUD-Assisted Adults, 2006–2012 is available at: http://bit.ly/2ndUxIN