Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, released the 2015 annual report of the HHS Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender, or LGBT, Issues Coordinating Committee, “LGBT Health and Well-being: HHS Issues Coordinating Committee 2015 Report” documents the department’s work over the past year and its commitments for 2016. Center for American Progress Senior Fellow Kellan Baker released the following statement:
Access to inclusive and quality health care remains at the heart of the fight for LGBT equality. In addition to the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling on marriage equality, 2015 has seen historic advances, such as new nationwide nondiscrimination protections in health care and coverage and data collection initiatives giving LGBT people the opportunity to share information with their health care providers that will help make sure they get the care they need with the respect they deserve. With these and other initiatives, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is helping lead the way toward equality for LGBT people and their families, allowing more Americans to live full, authentic, and healthy lives.
The report documents major steps HHS has taken over the past year, including establishing explicit nondiscrimination protections in health care, combatting conversion therapy, and enhancing data collection efforts. It also outlines several important steps the department will take in the coming year to build on this progress, from updates to the Medicare and Medicaid Conditions of Participation for hospitals to improving LGBT-inclusive data collection in surveys, administrative forms, and electronic health records. The report release comes amid the National LGBT Week of Action for Enrollment, a collaborative effort between HHS, the White House, Out2Enroll, and LGBT organizations to promote access to quality, affordable health insurance coverage for LGBT community members.
For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Tom Caiazza at [email protected] or 202.481.7141.
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