Synopsis
This brief details the hostility or discrimination LGBT older adults might face in professional care settings, and the uneven knowledge and enforcement of Non-Discrimination Acts in public accommodations and housing.
Older Americans are frequently dependent on the assistance of professional health care providers, whether home-based service providers or doctors, nurses, and staff at medical centers and long-term care facilities. LGBT older adults, who are less likely to be able to rely on family members for caregiving, often face hostile or unwelcoming health care providers, or might encounter staff members who are unfamiliar with the needs of the LGBT community. These experiences and fears can cause LGBT older adults to delay seeking necessary health care, sometimes indefinitely, and can lead to premature institutionalization in nursing homes and long-term care facilities due to fear of hostile in-home care providers. One of eleven issue briefs based on the SAGE/MAP report Improving the Lives of LGBT Older Adults.
