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At the November 12 meeting of the Public Health Council of the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, researchers presented a report entitled Health Profile of Massachusetts Adults by Sexual Orientation Identity. The report featured results of a survey of 38,910 adults, including 1.9 percent who self-identified as gay or lesbian, and 1 percent who identified as bisexual. The report was funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and the Williams Institute at the University of California, Los Angeles and is available as a PDF here.
The survey found several health disparities impacting lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Massachusetts, and found that bisexuals are especially impacted by these disparities. After adjusting for socio-demographic differences between groups, statistically significant differences that emerged, including:
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Bisexual Massachusetts residents were more likely than heterosexual residents to lack health insurance, lack a primary care doctor, lack dental cleaning in the past 12 months, be limited by a disability, report a lifetime diagnosis of heart disease, report current depressive and anxiety-related symptoms, report that they seriously considered suicide, be current smokers, and report having been sexually assaulted in the prior 12 months and/or in their lifetime. Bisexual women were more likely to report use of illegal drugs compared to heterosexual women. -
Lesbian women in Massachusetts are more likely to be obese compared to straight women. -
Compared to their straight counterparts, gays and lesbians in Massachusetts were more likely to report a disability-related activity limitation, anxiety-related symptoms, being a current smoker, binge drinking and illicit drug use, lifetime sexual assault, and a lifetime asthma diagnosis.
On the other hand, the report found that gay, lesbian and bisexual Massachusetts residents were more likely to report being tested for HIV at least once compared to their straight counterparts, and that gay men reported a higher rate of condom use during their last sexual encounter than straight men.
“These findings demonstrate the need for carefully designed and targeted public health interventions for lesbian, gay and bisexual people. The report makes it clear that bisexual residents, especially, faired worse than heterosexual/straight residents in a number of health areas. It is important that we take these findings and use them to develop targeted programs and services to address these disparities as well as new studies to identify the causes behind them,” says Henia Handler, Fenway’s Director of Government Affairs, who attended the November 12 Public Health Council meeting.
Here at The Fenway Institute we are committed addressing these health disparities. We have developed resources for you, your health care provider, your community organization, your friends, and family to help create a healthier LGBT community:
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We worked with The American College of Physicians to publish The Fenway Guide to LGBT Health, the first medical textbook in the U.S. to address the health care needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. The editors of The Fenway Guide are also developing Learning Modules on LGBT Health to help facilitate the teaching of LGBT health topics to clinical students, practicing clinicians, and other health professionals. These modules are available for free download from our website. -
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Fenway played a vital role in lobbying the federal government to include LGBT health concerns in a companion document to Healthy People 2010, the blueprint for improving the nation's health in the first decade of the new century. We are currently working to make sure LGBT health needs are more prominently addressed in Healthy People 2020. -
The Fenway Institute holds a seat on the Executive Council of the National Coalition for LGBT Health and works with others from around the country to see that on both federal and state levels across the country the unique health needs of the LGBT community continue to be given attention and value. -
We are funded by the United State Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to coordinate The National LGBT Tobacco Control Network to work with state officials and community advocates across the U.S. to address disproportionately high tobacco use in the LGBT community.
We hope you find these resources helpful. Please email us at information@fenwayhealth.org if you have questions or are interested in learning more. |
