Carson City March 24, 2021
Nevada is proud to support National LGBT Health Awareness Week and “Out for Equity,” to help highlight the need for continuing engagement of the LGBTQ+ community on health care issues.
National LGBT Health Awareness Week, this year from March 22-26, is coordinated by the National Coalition for LGBT Health.
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning or Queer (LGBTQ+) persons often have distinct health needs and can face issues that reinforce societal stressors and stigmas even from within the health care system.
The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services is committed to equity in health care for all Nevadans and recognizes the LGBTQ+ community as part of the rich and diverse legacy of Nevada.
“I am proud to support and embrace National LGBT Health Awareness Week and ‘Out for Equity.’ Equity and inclusion are cornerstones of our State’s values, and ensuring the health and wellbeing of Nevada’s LGBTQ+ communities is equally as important to our State,” said Governor Steve Sisolak. “I am grateful for the Department of Health and Human Services’ continued work to support the health needs of our LGBTQ+ communities.”
Across the Department many initiatives are at work to support LGBTQ+ health care needs.
The Division of Public and Behavioral Health is working with health care facilities across the state in the rollout of the nation’s most comprehensive Cultural Competency Training, bringing a focus of equity in health care for marginalized groups. The Division also supports the Advisory Task Force on HIV Exposure Modernization, as outlined in the legislation signed by Governor Sisolak during the 2019 Legislative Session.
The Division of Health Care Financing and Policy expanded Nevada’s Medicaid coverage to include gender affirming treatment of transgender patients in 2018. The Office of Vital Records has streamlined the process for amending gender marker birth certificates, and offers a third gender marker, Gender X, for those that don’t align as strictly male or female.
“The Department of Health and Human Services is continually working to be ‘Out for Equity’ in its advocacy for LGBTQ+ health, and is acting upon the need for, and importance of, aligning prevention and care delivery with existing evidence-based, culturally sensitive standards of care for LGBTQ+ patients,” said Director Richard Whitley.
Nevada is one of the first states to begin collecting Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) data as part of COVID-19 contact tracing, to better understand the impact of the pandemic on the LGBTQ+ community.