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. 2015 Jun;105(6):1101-5.
doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2015.302589. Epub 2015 Apr 16.

State-level marriage equality and the health of same-sex couples

Ben Lennox Kail  1 , Katie L Acosta, Eric R Wright
Affiliations

State-level marriage equality and the health of same-sex couples

Ben Lennox Kail et al. Am J Public Health. 2015 Jun.

Abstract

Objectives: We assessed the association between the health of people in same-sex relationships and the degree and nature of the legal recognition of same-sex relationships offered in the states in which they resided.

Methods: We conducted secondary data analyses on the 2010 to 2013 Current Population Survey and publicly available data from Freedom to Marry, Inc. We estimated ordered logistic regression models in a 4-level framework to assess the impact of states' legal stances toward same-sex marriage on self-assessed health.

Results: Our findings indicated, relative to states with antigay constitutional amendments, that same-sex couples living in states with legally sanctioned marriage reported higher levels of self-assessed health.

Conclusions: Our findings suggested that full legal recognition of same-sex relationships through marriage might be an important legal and policy strategy for improving the health of same-sex couples.

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References

    1. National Council of State Legislatures. Same Sex Marriage Laws. Washington, DC: National Council of State Legislatures; 2014.
    1. Freedom to Marry Inc. States. 2014. Available at: http://www.freedomtomarry.org/states. Accessed March 15, 2014.
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    1. Brewer PR, Wilcox C. Same-sex marriage and civil unions. Public Opin Q. 2005;69(4):599–616.
    1. Baunach DM. Decomposing trends in attitudes toward gay marriage, 1988–2006. Soc Sci Q. 2011;92(2):346–363. - PubMed

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