Corey Prachniak serves as Chair of LGBT HealthLink’s Steering Committee, and is an LGBT rights and healthcare attorney. Corey tweets @LGBTadvocacy.
It’s hard to believe that it has been more than four months since LGBT HealthLink, in conjunction with Promo Found, launched the LGBT Healthcare Bill of Rights. So far, this initiative has been endorsed by nearly 90 organizations ranging from major LGBT rights organizations like HRC and Lambda Legal to statewide organizations and local community centers all across the country. On Twitter, the #LGBTHBOR has been tweeted to almost 1.5 million followers.
Almost 12 million people just got healthcare coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s federal and state-based exchanges. Millions more have joined Medicaid as a result of the Act. At the same time, the spread of marriage equality and implementation of antidiscrimination laws means that more LGBT people in particular are getting access to coverage.
Whether you’re newly insured for the first time (in which case congrats!) or have had your same insurance for years, why not take a few minutes to learn more about your rights that relate to that coverage? And your rights that relate to healthcare more broadly?
We hope that you never face discrimination in accessing care. But if you do, the Healthcare Bill of Rights will connect you to resources so that you can report the discrimination. We also have resources for finding healthcare providers who are LGBT-friendly so that if you don’t feel comfortable where you are now, you can switch.
And just in case you lose that data signal on your cell, you can download the Bill as a PDF or a printable wallet-sized card. Pretty snazzy, huh?
~~~
¡Nuestro programa de tus derechos en cuanto a la asistencia médica se habla español! Descarga aquí.
LGBT HealthLink, The Network for Health Equity 