MA Special Commission on LGBT Aging Releases Report

A report released today by the Special Legislative Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Aging recommends a sweeping set of reforms to improve the care of LGBT older adults in the Commonwealth.

To learn about the needs of the elderly and aging LGBT population in Massachusetts, the Commission held hearings in Boston, Orleans, Worcester, and Holyoke to collect testimony from LGBT older adults, and the community groups that serve them. The Commission also solicited written comments from the public.

As a result of the data collected at the public hearings, the Commission issued recommendations in five major areas: long-term support services; housing; public health; senior centers and community engagement; and legal considerations. The Commission also made recommendations regarding data collection, needs assessment, training and service delivery, and outreach.

Specifically, the Commission recommends:

– training for all providers on the elder care continuum—from health care professionals to Probate Court personnel—in the provision of nondiscriminatory, affirming care for LGBT older adults;

– collection of data on sexual orientation and gender identity to quantify, understand and address any disparities that LGBT older adults experience compared with their heterosexual and non-transgender peers;

– increased outreach targeting LGBT older adults to ensure they are accessing services to which they are entitled, such as Veteran’s Administration services; and

– designating an LGBT ombudsperson within the Executive Office of Health and Human Services to ensure the integration of LGBT concerns into the Commonwealth’s aging and human services networks and to advocate for LGBT older adults experiencing barriers to services.

“We have long known that LGBT older adults face unique challenges as they age. Few of them have the family connections such as partners or spouses, children, and extended family who can provide the care that much of the general population relies on from their families as they age,” said State Sen. Pat Jehlen (D-Somerville), Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs. “This first-in-the-nation commission report provides a roadmap for giving our state’s LGBT older adults the care that they deserve, and it is one that other states can follow.”

The Commission was formed in 2013 when then-Gov. Deval Patrick and the Massachusetts Legislature convened the country’s first statewide LGBT Aging Commission to assess the needs of the state’s elderly and aging LGBT population. In 2015, the legislature voted to make the Commission permanent. The Commission has 26 members, including representatives from the Joint Committee on Elder Affairs; Executive Office of Elder Affairs; Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development; Massachusetts Department for Public Health; LGBT Aging Project; Fenway Health; Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders; New England Association of HIV Over Fifty; MassEquality; Mass Home Care; AARP of Massachusetts; Massachusetts Association of Councils on Aging; Massachusetts Senior Care Association; and Home Care Aide Council.

“Many older LGBT people have faced numerous incidents of discrimination throughout their lives,” added State Rep. James O’Day (D-West Boylston), co-chair of the Commission. “It is up to us to implement these recommendations to offer them a future of dignity and safety.”

“I commend the entire LGBT Aging Commission, and in particular Senator Pat Jehlen and Representative Jim O’Day, for their superb work in putting together this first in the nation report,” said Senate President Stan Rosenberg (D-Amherst). “Massachusetts has always been a pioneer on issues that affect the LGBT community, and this report is the first step in advancing a policy agenda that addresses the concerns of the thousands of LGBT older adults across the Commonwealth.”

An electronic version of the report will be made available online in the coming weeks.

– Submitted by State Senator Pat Jehlen’s office