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Happy Friday, readers.
Earlier this week, I wrote about mental health and Kanye West, noting that one in five Americans suffers from a mental illness. But depression and suicidal tendencies disproportionately affect LGBTQ youths, according to a new survey from the Trevor Project.
This is the second annual study that the LGBTQ-focused organization has released on the mental health of these Americans. And it lays out a long list of inequities for young LGBTQ people.
It wasn’t a small survey, either. The Trevor Project reached out to more than 40,000 LGBTQ youth across America and claims that it is “the largest study of its kind” ever conducted.
The study encompasses a diverse community of transgender, nonbinary, gay, lesbian, and queer individuals who all face their own unique problems. For instance, 86% of those surveyed overall said that recent politics have negatively impacted their well-being; 40% of all respondents seriously contemplated suicide within the past 12 months. The number rises to more than 50% for transgender and nonbinary youth.
Job and housing discrimination, physical threats, and societal pressure to “change” their sexual orientations or gender identities are also rampant, according to the survey.
But there are some nuggets of good news, too. The study found that 86% of LGBTQ youth had high levels of personal support from at least one person. It’s a start. But there’s still considerable room for improvement.
Read on for the day’s news, and see you next week.
Sy Mukherjee
[email protected]
@the_sy_guy
DIGITAL HEALTH
Telehealth firm Hims reportedly considers going public. Telemedicine startup Hims (which has a prominent roster of backers, as we've reported) is reportedly considering going public, according to Reuters. It's all very hush-hush so far, but the company would ostensibly reach a deal with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in order to become a public firm. Hims started as an online source for treatments catered towards men, such as generic Viagra and hair loss product, but has since expanded its footprint to include mental health virtual visits. Demand for such remote services has exploded during the coronavirus pandemic. (Reuters)
INDICATIONS
Biogen's new CFO comes from a data-driven background. Drug giant Biogen has a new chief financial officer—Michael McDonnell, who currently holds the same post at the pharma-focused data analytics company IQVIA. The switch in such a key executive role coincides with Biogen's bold gambit to win the first-ever Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for an Alzheimer's drug that treats the disease's underlying causes, rather than just symptoms. (Wall Street Journal)
THE BIG PICTURE
Dr. Anthony Fauci to receive private security after death threats against family. Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the country's top infectious disease specialists and in many ways the face of the Trump administration's response to the COVID crisis, says that he and his family have received "serious threats" on their lives and have had to beef up their personal security. "Back in the days of HIV when I was being criticized with some hate mail, it was, you know, people calling me a gay-lover and ‘what the hell are you wasting a lot of time on that’ … things that you would just push aside as stupid people saying stupid things," Fauci said during an appearance on The Axe Files podcast. But it's risen to a different "magnitude" now he continued. "There are people who get really angry at thinking I’m interfering with their life because I’m pushing a public health agenda."
REQUIRED READING
Calculating the middle class, by Jeff John Roberts
These big companies have cut the most daily ad dollars during the Facebook boycott, by Danielle Abril
Intel has fallen behind again on its next big chip manufacturing improvement, by Aaron Pressman