June is Pride Month: A time to focus on needs of the LGBTQ+ community

June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month, a month that commemorates the Stonewall Uprising — considered the tipping point for what was then called the Gay Liberation Movement. During the uprising, which took place in Manhattan in June 1969, police clashed with LGBTQ+ protesters over a six‑day period.

The month of June provides an opportunity to recognize and increase awareness of issues faced by the LGBTQ+ community. In the May — June issue of Hospital and Physician Update, we wrote about the disparities that exist for the estimated 4% of Michigan adults identified as LGBTQ+.

The LGBTQ+ community has been identified as a "health disparity population" by the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities.** Mental health conditions, higher rates of alcohol, tobacco and other substance use, as well as higher odds of obesity and eating disorders, are common conditions within the community. We’ve found that some members of the community don’t seek needed health services because they don’t feel comfortable or safe sharing gender or sexual identity with health care providers. 

What’s more, members of the LGBTQ+ community face other barriers to care, including exclusion from a partner's health insurance, provider‑related discrimination, psychosocial barriers (such as fear of disclosing possible illegal behaviors or sexual orientation) and poor matches between the needs of LGBTQ+ people and the kinds of services that are available. 

But there are many steps we can take to support LGBTQ+ members and help ensure they receive the best possible health outcomes. This includes providing appropriate training to doctors and office staff about the challenges this community faces:

Here are links to two training modules we recently shared with practices that have been designated as Patient‑Centered Medical Homes:

• Creating an LGBT-Friendly Practice**
• Quality Health Care for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People**

Note: These are not Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan‑sponsored training sessions.

Following are some of the steps you can take to help promote more inclusive practices:

• Review policies, procedures, documents and forms to ensure they are inclusive. 
• Allow patients the opportunity to indicate the pronouns and names they wish to use.
• When you call patients from the waiting room, address them in a way that’s not specific to a particular gender.
• Understand the distinction between biological sex and gender identity. 
• Share community resources that can help patients with their concerns.
• Ensure that forms and policies don’t assume a patient's gender or their marital or partner status.
• Make sure the equal opportunity statement on forms addresses gender identity and sexual orientation.

For more information about this issue, see the article that ran in the May — June issue of Hospital and Physician Update.

**Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan doesn’t own or control this website.