Financial Well-being and Impact on Alcohol and Mental Health Outcomes During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has had widespread effects on the global economy. The present study seeks to examine the enduring impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the relationship between financial well-being, alcohol use, and mental health outcomes in individuals with and without an alcohol use disorder (AUD).

Participants who were enrolled in the NIAAA COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Alcohol Study (C19-PIA) were invited to complete questionnaires on financial well-being, alcohol use, and mental health symptoms as part of an online anniversary survey collected between April 6, 2022, and July 2, 2022. The analytic sample included 250 participants who had valid data on key study variables, including past year AUD previously assessed in the NIAAA Natural History Protocol using structured clinical interviews.

Individuals with AUD were less likely to apply for financial assistance and reported greater worries about their financial well-being. Lower financial well-being during the pandemic was associated with higher problematic drinking and worse mental health outcomes. Significant covariates included age, sex, and race.

The findings suggest an association between financial stress and problematic alcohol use during financial instability that appeared to persist 2 years into the COVID-19 pandemic. This highlights the potential impact of outreach efforts to improve accessibility of financial assistance, particularly for vulnerable individuals with AUD with financial worries and uncertainties during the pandemic.