Miss it the first time?
Know someone who would appreciate seeing it?
The critically-acclaimed LGBT aging documentary,
Gen Silent (63 min) is streaming again for home viewing now through Sunday, February 5th.
Simply visit our website to watch now
The first 30 screenings each day are free! $2.99 after
NEWS:
Our initial, free home screening event was wildly successful with more than 8,000 viewings in 56 different countries.
Unfortunately, donations were far fewer than needed to cover the costs of streaming for free.
We are continuing to give away free screenings at the beginning of each day but then must charge $2.99.
We will keep you posted about upcoming "Home Screening Events"!
-The Gen Silent Team
"The generation that fought hardest to come out,
is going back in- to survive."
Showing posts with label LGBT elders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LGBT elders. Show all posts
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Genny Awards Announce Accomplishments for 20111
The Genny Awards
What a remarkable year 2011 was for LGBT aging!
The Gennys* honor those stories that impacted LGBT older people the most,
and the advocates and elders who made these breakthroughs possible.
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
The Genny Awards
What a remarkable year 2011 was for LGBT aging!
The Gennys* honor those stories that impacted LGBT older people the most,
and the advocates and elders who made these breakthroughs possible.
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
Reposted at http://www.keystothecloset.blogspot.com
What a remarkable year 2011 was for LGBT aging!
The Gennys* honor those stories that impacted LGBT older people the most,
and the advocates and elders who made these breakthroughs possible.
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
The Genny Awards
What a remarkable year 2011 was for LGBT aging!
The Gennys* honor those stories that impacted LGBT older people the most,
and the advocates and elders who made these breakthroughs possible.
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
Counting down to number one, the 2011 Gennys are awarded
to the following stories that advanced the cause of LGBT aging:
10. HUD holds LGBT elder Housing Summit
This year marked the first time that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publically acknowledged the unique housing needs of LGBT elders though a gathering of developers, government agencies and advocates. http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/gay/lesbian/news/ARTICLE.php?AID=35184
9. National Resource Center on LGBT Aging receives nearly 100 requests for cultural competency training
The National Resource Center on LGBT Aging saw requests from organizations and agencies in 32 states around the country that wish to use its new curriculum to become more sensitive to the needs of LGBT older people. http://www.lgbtagingcenter.org/about/training.cfm
8. California becomes first state to require LGBT history in public schools
In July, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law requiring that public schools include the historic contributions of LGBT individuals in social studies curriculum. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/14/california-gay-history-law-jerry-brown_n_898745.html
7. Aging professionals convene to address the needs of aging LGBT people of color
Leaders in the field came together in the nation's capital to begin building a network of professionals serving POC LGBT older people. The historic gathering was called a declaration to transform aging health care for people of color who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. http://griotcircle.wordpress.com/2011/10/13/national-poc-lgbt-convening-day-one/
6. Record dollars go to community LGBT health and aging Initiatives
The acknowledgement of LGBT elders by their own communities grew substantially in 2011 with the awards of local grants to create more services. These included an historic $248,000 grant to the Fenway Institute in Boston, MA. to create a National Training and Technical Assistance Center to help communities improve the health of LGBT populations, including elders.
5. First LGBT senior center in the United States is announced.
Opening of the first full-time center dedicated to serving LGBT older people is scheduled for January, 2012. It will be based in Manhattan's Chelsea neighborhood but offers a "comprehensive array of services and support" to LGBT elders throughout New York City. http://www.sageusa.org/about/news_item.cfm?news=302
4. First federally funded national study on the health of LGBT older people.
Working with agencies around the country, the University of Washington study revealed staggering rates of disability, depression and loneliness compared to heterosexuals of similar ages. The statistics have been a part of congressional testimony, and will likely be the supporting evidence for a wave of grant proposals to help LGBT elders. http://caringandaging.org/
3. Medicare begins enforcing visitation rights for same-sex couples.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has directed all hospitals that receive Medicare and Medicaid dollars to support a patient's right to choose his/her/zirs own visitors during a hospital stay. Hospitals must also recognize advance directives designating a same-sex partner as someone who can make emergency medical decisions. Hospitals that don't adequately address these rights risk losing all Medicare dollars. In a single policy change, hundreds of thousands of older Americans can now contemplate a hospital stay without fear of being separated from those they love.
http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2011pres/09/20110907a.html
2. HHS moves to protect same-sex couples from poverty and homelessness resulting from long-term care
In April, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that states can provide same-sex domestic partners of long-term care Medicaid beneficiaries the same protections as opposite-sex spouses. This includes not taking away the couples home if a survivor still lives there. The directive (if followed by states) provides America's LGBT older people with a safety net they never have had against homelessness and poverty that can result from caring for a loved one. http://www.nsclc.org/index.php/issue-brief-cms-issues-guidance-on-medicaid-rules-for-same-sex-partners/
1. Justice Department Declines to Defend
the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)
The Obama administration announced in February that the Justice Department would no longer defend DOMA in court. DOMA has blocked access to critically needed federal benefits for elderly same-sex couples, even in states where marriage and/or domestic partnerships are available. The decision brings thousands of LGBT couples closer to eventually receiving Social Security survivor benefits, VA spousal benefits and protections against impoverishment.
The American Society on Aging has recommended that aging LGBT couples begin applying for such benefits. While denial is likely in the short term, retroactive payments to those who are denied are a possibility once DOMA is repealed. http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/02/president-obama-instructs-justice-department-to-stop-defending-defense-of-marriage-act-calls-clinton/
The Genny Awards recognize those moments that move LGBT older people away from fear and towards respect and admiration.
*The Gennys are named in honor of the film, "Gen Silent": the documentary that sheds light on the epidemic of LGBT older people going back into the closet in order to survive insensitivity or discrimination in care. Gen Silent also profiles those people fighting to keep elders from being silenced. For more info: http://gensilent.com/
Reposted at http://www.keystothecloset.blogspot.com
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Protecting Our LGBT Elders: An Overview of LGBT Aging Issues
By Jeff Krehely , Michael Adams | September 28, 2010
Earlier this year, Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Elders, or SAGE, and the Movement Advancement Project, or MAP, released "Improving the Lives of LGBT Older Adults" in partnership with the Center for American Progress, the American Society on Aging, and the National Senior Citizens Law Center. The report provides an overview of LGBT elders' unique needs and the policy and regulatory changes that are needed to adequately address them.
To follow up on that work, SAGE, MAP, and CAP have developed 11 policy briefs that provide more information on the issues raised in the report. This memo provides links to and summaries of these briefs. For a very fast summary of the issues at play, see the Facts at a Glance document.
Falling Through the Safety Net: This brief illustrates how policy and social barriers gradually tear away at the safety net for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, or LGBT, older adults—and how these inequities compound and reinforce each other, creating a dramatically different aging experience for LGBT older adults based solely on the different treatment they experience because they are not heterosexual. It explains that the barriers and inequality facing LGBT older adults stem from the effects of social stigmas and prejudice, their reliance on informal "families of choice" for care and support, and inequitable laws and programs that treat LGBT elders unequally. These barriers can prevent LGBT elders from achieving three key elements of successful aging: financial security, good health and health care, and social support and community engagement.
Social Security: LGBT older adults are not eligible for Social Security spousal benefits, survivor benefits, or death benefits. This disparate treatment is especially unjust because Social Security benefits are not freely given; they are based on the contributions people make throughout their working lives—and LGBT people work and pay into Social Security in the same manner as their heterosexual counterparts. The lack of equal Social Security benefits contributes to higher poverty rates among older same-sex couples and significantly reduces their retirement income, potentially leaving a surviving same-sex spouse without a living-wage income.
Medicaid: Medicaid generally pays for older Americans requiring long-term institutional or home-based care. Only individuals with low assets and income can qualify for Medicaid, but Medicaid qualification rules also include a series of "spousal impoverishment protections" that aim to prevent requiring a healthy spouse to live in poverty in order to qualify a sick spouse for Medicaid. Unfortunately, these spousal impoverishment protections do not apply to same-sex couples, which can leave the same-sex partner of a Medicaid recipient homeless, penniless, and without a living-wage income.
Pension Plans: LGBT older adults are often denied pension plan options that provide financial protections for a surviving partner—even though LGBT employees earn their pensions through the same hard work and financial contributions as their heterosexual counterparts. The lack of pension income can devastate a surviving partner in the event of a death, especially given that LGBT elders are poorer and less financially secure than American elders as a whole. Even when both partners are healthy, LGBT older adults are denied the peace of mind that comes from knowing that a surviving partner will receive an adequate living income upon the death of the pension holder.
Tax-Qualified Retirement Plans: Inheriting a tax-qualified retirement plan from a loved one can cost an LGBT person thousands of dollars per year in retirement income because of different treatment under the law. This inequity is especially significant given that LGBT elders are poorer and less financially secure than Americans as a whole.
Estate Tax and Inheritance Laws: Unlike their heterosexual counterparts, unless an LGBT elder has specific legal documents in place upon their death, state laws generally hand over financial decision-making and inheritance to spouses or blood relatives rather than domestic partners or families of choice. This means that surviving LGBT partners or other loved ones can be totally shut out of an inheritance, resulting in the loss of critical retirement savings, forfeiture of a family home, or impoverishment. Additionally, even when a surviving partner does inherit a deceased loved one's assets, inequitable tax treatment of same-sex couples can mean paying 45 percent in taxes on an inheritance that a surviving heterosexual spouse would inherit tax free.
Legal Barriers to Taking Care of Loved Ones: LGBT older adults confront many challenges their heterosexual counterparts do not face. Some of the most unconscionable are laws that stand in the way of LGBT people taking care of those they love, in life and in death. LGBT people are not granted family or medical leave to take care of a sick or terminally ill partner under federal law and most state laws. Furthermore, LGBT people could be excluded from medical decision making for a partner. Finally, upon the death of a partner, LGBT people are often denied making end-of-life decisions about last rites, funerals, and disposition of remains.
Exclusion from Aging Programs and Services: LGBT older adults often face harassment or hostility when accessing aging programs and when frequenting senior centers, volunteer centers or places of worship. Few aging service providers plan for, or conduct outreach to, the LGBT community—and few are prepared to address acts of discrimination aimed at LGBT elders by staff or other older people. This makes many LGBT older adults reluctant to access mainstream aging services, which increases their social isolation and negatively impacts their physical and mental health.
Inhospitable Health Care Environments: 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.
Health Disparities: LGBT older adults experience health disparities across four general areas: access to health care, HIV/AIDS, mental health, and chronic physical conditions. Additionally, extra taxation on retiree health insurance benefits means that many LGBT elders simply cannot afford to receive retiree health insurance. This is especially problematic given that LGBT older adults face a wide range of physical health disparities that are generally unaddressed by governments or health care providers.
Rethinking Aging Laws for Today's Older Adults: Most federal and state safety net programs that support older adults are built around the presumption of a married heterosexual couple. This presumption simply does not match the reality of the lives of today's older adults. Almost one-third of the entire population aged 65 and older are widowed men and women, and 42 percent of women aged 65 and older and 59 percent of women aged 75 and older are widowed. Many heterosexual elders live in domestic partnerships, often because marrying or remarrying would result in unaffordable financial consequences. Just more than 4 percent of older adults (including those in religious orders and those who simply choose to remain single) were never married. Another 4 percent of older adults are gay, lesbian, or bisexual, and may be single or in a legally recognized same-sex relationship. Policymakers need to examine ways to adapt laws and safety nets to help protect all of today's older adults. Many of the recommendations to help LGBT older adults would also improve the lives of heterosexual elders in domestic partnerships, or single and widowed heterosexual elders who are not able to rely on a spouse for financial or caretaking support.
These briefs—and the full report—offer a plan to help our nation better care for and serve its increasingly visible older LGBT population. Now is the time to make changes to laws, community services and attitudes, and health care practices to help elders improve their financial security, access culturally competent health care, and remain active and fully engaged members of their communities. All Americans deserve the chance to age with dignity, and solutions that help LGBT elders do so will help all Americans who are aging or face inequality.
Michael Adams is the Executive Director of Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders and Jeff Krehely is Director of the LGBT Research and Communications Project at the Center for American Progress.
Posted at Center for American Progress http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/09/lgbt_aging.html
Reposted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com
Earlier this year, Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Elders, or SAGE, and the Movement Advancement Project, or MAP, released "Improving the Lives of LGBT Older Adults" in partnership with the Center for American Progress, the American Society on Aging, and the National Senior Citizens Law Center. The report provides an overview of LGBT elders' unique needs and the policy and regulatory changes that are needed to adequately address them.
To follow up on that work, SAGE, MAP, and CAP have developed 11 policy briefs that provide more information on the issues raised in the report. This memo provides links to and summaries of these briefs. For a very fast summary of the issues at play, see the Facts at a Glance document.
Falling Through the Safety Net: This brief illustrates how policy and social barriers gradually tear away at the safety net for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, or LGBT, older adults—and how these inequities compound and reinforce each other, creating a dramatically different aging experience for LGBT older adults based solely on the different treatment they experience because they are not heterosexual. It explains that the barriers and inequality facing LGBT older adults stem from the effects of social stigmas and prejudice, their reliance on informal "families of choice" for care and support, and inequitable laws and programs that treat LGBT elders unequally. These barriers can prevent LGBT elders from achieving three key elements of successful aging: financial security, good health and health care, and social support and community engagement.
Social Security: LGBT older adults are not eligible for Social Security spousal benefits, survivor benefits, or death benefits. This disparate treatment is especially unjust because Social Security benefits are not freely given; they are based on the contributions people make throughout their working lives—and LGBT people work and pay into Social Security in the same manner as their heterosexual counterparts. The lack of equal Social Security benefits contributes to higher poverty rates among older same-sex couples and significantly reduces their retirement income, potentially leaving a surviving same-sex spouse without a living-wage income.
Medicaid: Medicaid generally pays for older Americans requiring long-term institutional or home-based care. Only individuals with low assets and income can qualify for Medicaid, but Medicaid qualification rules also include a series of "spousal impoverishment protections" that aim to prevent requiring a healthy spouse to live in poverty in order to qualify a sick spouse for Medicaid. Unfortunately, these spousal impoverishment protections do not apply to same-sex couples, which can leave the same-sex partner of a Medicaid recipient homeless, penniless, and without a living-wage income.
Pension Plans: LGBT older adults are often denied pension plan options that provide financial protections for a surviving partner—even though LGBT employees earn their pensions through the same hard work and financial contributions as their heterosexual counterparts. The lack of pension income can devastate a surviving partner in the event of a death, especially given that LGBT elders are poorer and less financially secure than American elders as a whole. Even when both partners are healthy, LGBT older adults are denied the peace of mind that comes from knowing that a surviving partner will receive an adequate living income upon the death of the pension holder.
Tax-Qualified Retirement Plans: Inheriting a tax-qualified retirement plan from a loved one can cost an LGBT person thousands of dollars per year in retirement income because of different treatment under the law. This inequity is especially significant given that LGBT elders are poorer and less financially secure than Americans as a whole.
Estate Tax and Inheritance Laws: Unlike their heterosexual counterparts, unless an LGBT elder has specific legal documents in place upon their death, state laws generally hand over financial decision-making and inheritance to spouses or blood relatives rather than domestic partners or families of choice. This means that surviving LGBT partners or other loved ones can be totally shut out of an inheritance, resulting in the loss of critical retirement savings, forfeiture of a family home, or impoverishment. Additionally, even when a surviving partner does inherit a deceased loved one's assets, inequitable tax treatment of same-sex couples can mean paying 45 percent in taxes on an inheritance that a surviving heterosexual spouse would inherit tax free.
Legal Barriers to Taking Care of Loved Ones: LGBT older adults confront many challenges their heterosexual counterparts do not face. Some of the most unconscionable are laws that stand in the way of LGBT people taking care of those they love, in life and in death. LGBT people are not granted family or medical leave to take care of a sick or terminally ill partner under federal law and most state laws. Furthermore, LGBT people could be excluded from medical decision making for a partner. Finally, upon the death of a partner, LGBT people are often denied making end-of-life decisions about last rites, funerals, and disposition of remains.
Exclusion from Aging Programs and Services: LGBT older adults often face harassment or hostility when accessing aging programs and when frequenting senior centers, volunteer centers or places of worship. Few aging service providers plan for, or conduct outreach to, the LGBT community—and few are prepared to address acts of discrimination aimed at LGBT elders by staff or other older people. This makes many LGBT older adults reluctant to access mainstream aging services, which increases their social isolation and negatively impacts their physical and mental health.
Inhospitable Health Care Environments: 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.
Health Disparities: LGBT older adults experience health disparities across four general areas: access to health care, HIV/AIDS, mental health, and chronic physical conditions. Additionally, extra taxation on retiree health insurance benefits means that many LGBT elders simply cannot afford to receive retiree health insurance. This is especially problematic given that LGBT older adults face a wide range of physical health disparities that are generally unaddressed by governments or health care providers.
Rethinking Aging Laws for Today's Older Adults: Most federal and state safety net programs that support older adults are built around the presumption of a married heterosexual couple. This presumption simply does not match the reality of the lives of today's older adults. Almost one-third of the entire population aged 65 and older are widowed men and women, and 42 percent of women aged 65 and older and 59 percent of women aged 75 and older are widowed. Many heterosexual elders live in domestic partnerships, often because marrying or remarrying would result in unaffordable financial consequences. Just more than 4 percent of older adults (including those in religious orders and those who simply choose to remain single) were never married. Another 4 percent of older adults are gay, lesbian, or bisexual, and may be single or in a legally recognized same-sex relationship. Policymakers need to examine ways to adapt laws and safety nets to help protect all of today's older adults. Many of the recommendations to help LGBT older adults would also improve the lives of heterosexual elders in domestic partnerships, or single and widowed heterosexual elders who are not able to rely on a spouse for financial or caretaking support.
These briefs—and the full report—offer a plan to help our nation better care for and serve its increasingly visible older LGBT population. Now is the time to make changes to laws, community services and attitudes, and health care practices to help elders improve their financial security, access culturally competent health care, and remain active and fully engaged members of their communities. All Americans deserve the chance to age with dignity, and solutions that help LGBT elders do so will help all Americans who are aging or face inequality.
Michael Adams is the Executive Director of Services & Advocacy for GLBT Elders and Jeff Krehely is Director of the LGBT Research and Communications Project at the Center for American Progress.
Posted at Center for American Progress http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2010/09/lgbt_aging.html
Reposted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com
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