Results from the U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse Survey, released this week, show the effects the COVID-19 pandemic is having on households across the nation.
The results, which came from more than 74,000 households, indicate many households have experienced loss in employment income, are concerned about food security and have put off decisions about health care.
In the state of California, 54.5 percent of the adults reported a loss of employment income. Among the the national population of adults 18 and old, 47 percent either lost employment income or another adult in the household lost employment income since March 13. Also, 39 percent of adults expect someone in their household or themselves to lose employment income within the coming weeks, according to the Census Bureau.
The results also show that 10 percent of adults said they do not get enough of the food they need.
People are also worried about paying their rent or mortgage on time, according to the data. About 10 percent of adults reported they were unable to play their rent or mortgage on time, while another 3.2 percent reported they deferred payments. Housing insecurity seems to be much higher than the national number. The data shows 27.9 percent of respondents reported having insecure housing.
A large portion of adults reported they have also deferred health care. About 38 percent of adults responded that over the last week weeks, they delayed seeking medical care because of the pandemic.
All of these indicators act as stressors for people. Adults reported feeling anxious or nervous more than half the day or nearly every day 29.7 percent of the time.