Ask the Doctor January-February 2022

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For multi-person homes with an individual who is at higher risk of hospitalization from COVID-19 because they are 65 years old or older, the percentage without two full bathrooms drops to 31% (7.2 million). The AHS excludes group quarters, so these metrics do not include nursing facilities. When someone quarantines alone in a bedroom in a multi-per- son home, others may be forced to double up and share bedrooms. About 1 in 10 multi-person households (11%, or 9.8 million) did not have enough bedrooms for an exposed individual to quaran- tine alone without forcing more than two people to stay in one of the remaining bedrooms. That number drops to 6% (1.3 million) in households with an individual 65 years old or older. Enough bedrooms is defined as a two- or three-person house- hold having at least 2 bedrooms, and a household of four or more having enough bedrooms to allow one person to isolate in a bed- room without forcing three or more people in the household to share a remaining bedroom. A lack of bedrooms and bathrooms to isolate was more prev- alent in lower-income homes. Among multi-person households with a total annual income below the federal poverty level, 61% (5.5 million) did not have at least two full bathrooms and enough bedrooms. In contrast, only 28% (15 million) of households with an income at least 300% of the federal poverty level did not have enough bedrooms and bathrooms to accommodate someone who had to quarantine. Differences existed by race, as well. Around 35% (1.8 million) of homes with an Asian householder did not have at least two bathrooms and enough bedrooms to isolate one member without forcing more than two other household members to share a re- maining bedroom. In high-density cities, where housing is at a premium and units are often smaller, multi-bedroom and multi-bath housing may not be attainable. For example, 59% (2.9 million) of multi-person homes in the New York City metropolitan area did not have at least two full bathrooms and enough bedrooms for one household member to isolate without forcing more than two other people in the house- hold to share a remaining bedroom. In contrast, in the Atlanta metro area, only 16% (260,000) of multi-person homes do not have enough bathrooms and bed- rooms. Kitchen and Laundry Households that do not have a washer and dryer or a full kitchen in their unit may have to make more trips outside of the home, potentially increasing their and other household members’ expo- sure to the infection. Around 19.6 million households (16%) did not have a washer and dryer and about 1.4 million households (1%) did not have a complete kitchen in 2019, according to AHS. About 5 million households (14%) with an individual 65 years old or older did not have a washer and dryer and about 460,000 (1%) did not have a complete kitchen. As was the case for homes with no extra baths and bedrooms, the lack of a full kitchen and a washer and dryer was more common in lower-income households. For households with a total income below the federal poverty level, 35% (6 million) lived in a home without both a full kitchen and a washer and dryer. Among households with an income at least three times the federal poverty level, only 9% (6.2 million) didn’t have those amenities. Among homes where the race of the householder was White

Alone, 13% (13 million) did not have both a full kitchen and a washer and dryer. Among homes where the householder was Black Alone, 29% of homes (4.9 million) did not have a full kitch- en and a washer and dryer. In the same way that housing costs in some areas affect the size of homes and apartments, they also affect home amenities. For example, over 29% of homes in the New York City (3.3 mil- lion) and Los Angeles (1.4 million) metropolitan areas did not have a full kitchen and laundry in 2019. Less than 10% (150,000) of homes in Atlanta did not have a full kitchen and laundry amenities — the lowest percentage among the 15 largest metro areas. Working from Home According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey, tens of millions of Americans have had to work or study from home more during the pandemic. Based on the survey’s estimates for the Jan. 20-Feb. 1, 2021 peri- od, about 37% (91 million) of adults have substituted some or all in-person work for telework because of the pandemic. Approxi- mately 84% (43 million) of adults with children in their house- hold have seen children’s classes moving to distance learning. When both working-age adults (ages 18-64) and school-age chil- dren (ages 6-17) must work and study from home, it may be best but not always possible for everyone to work in their own room. Among households with at least two working or school-age indi- viduals, 6% (4 million) did not have at least one room (excluding kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry rooms) per working age adult and school-age child, according to AHS. For households with a total income below the federal poverty level, 14% (930,000) did not have enough rooms for each work- ing-age and school-age individual to work in their own room compared to roughly 3% (1 million) for households with income of 300% of the federal poverty level or higher. When broken down by race, 5% of homes (2.8 million) with a householder who is White Alone did not have at least one room (excluding kitchens, bathrooms, and laundry rooms) per work- ing age adult and school-age child compared to 20% (55,700) of homes with a householder who is Pacific Islander. Location may also play a role in how many rooms are available for working and learning from home. Among the top 15 metro areas, 17% (1.6 million) of homes in the Los Angeles-Long Beach metro area did not have one or more rooms per working-age adult and school-age child. In contrast, 3% (520,000) of homes in Detroit metro area did not have at least one room per working-age adult and school-age kid. Staying Safe Many Americans have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by reevaluating how they use the space in their homes and by be- ing careful about how they limit their exposure to infection. Having a certain number of bedrooms and bathrooms or ame- nities like a full kitchen and an in-unit washer and dryer may make it easier for some individuals to reduce their exposure. The nationwide shift to working and learning at home caused by the pandemic may also have altered households’ needs for rooms available for working and learning. This article shows how households with different income levels and in different metro locations throughout the country may face dif- ferent challenges in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alex Rhodes and Katie Gustafson are statisticians in the Social, Econom- ic, and Housing Statistics Division of the U.S. Census Bureau.

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