Washington, DC — The 10th Annual National LGBT Health Awareness Week, a nationwide campaign that promotes lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) health, will run from March 26 — 30, 2012. LGBT Health Awareness Week is organized by the National Coalition for LGBT Health (the Coalition) with support from its planning committee partners, which include CenterLink: The Community of LGBT Centers (CenterLink), the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA), the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the International Federation of Black Prides, Lambda Legal, the LBGT Caucus of the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA), Legacy Community Health Center, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the Network for LGBT Health Equity, and OutHealth: A Program of Health Imperatives.
Health Awareness Week 2012 will advance four core principles:
1 - Consumer Empowerment — by making resources available to the LGBT community on how to approach their health care providers about their sexual orientation and gender identity;
2 - Culturally Competent Services — by directing health care providers to resources on how to become a culturally competent source of services for the LGBT community;
3 — Engaged Communities — by providing outreach materials to a variety of organizations to encourage participation in LGBT health Awareness Week; and
4 — Inclusive Policymaking — by engaging Congress and federal administration during LGBT Health Awareness Week and providing resources to reach out to local and state officials related to LGBT Health.
The Coalition, with CenterLink and GLMA, will sponsor a conference call with Health Resources Services Administrator Dr. Mary Wakerfield on Tuesday, March 27 at 1:00 p.m. EDT. Also in partnership with the Family Equality Council, Center for American Progress, HRC and GLMA, the Coalition will hold Congressional briefings on the health and well-being of LGBT Families on Wednesday, March 28. The Senate-side briefing is scheduled at 11 am and the House-side briefing at 2 pm. The briefing will be led by a panel composed of M. V. Lee Badgett, Research Director, The Williams Institiute; Desi Bailey, MD, Hospital Chief of Staff at Group Health Cooperative, and GLMA President; Joseph Jefferson, Senior Policy Associate, The National Coalition for LGBT Health; Emily Hecht-McGowan, Director of Public Policy, Family Equality Council; Naz Meftah; and Brian Moulton, Legal Director, Human Rights Campaign. Please contact Senior Policy Associate Joseph Jefferson for more information about these events.
The Coalition has developed a set of fact sheets that LGBT people and their allies can use to discuss these and other topics of importance for gay and bisexual men, lesbian and bisexual women, and transgender people of all sexual orientations. All fact sheets, as well as posters, postcards, and other press materials that can be used to promote National LGBT Health Awareness Week in your community, are available at www.lgbthealth.net/ .
About the National Coalition for LGBT Health
The National Coalition for LGBT Health is committed to improving the health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals and communities through public education, coalition building and advocacy that focuses on research, policy, education and training. Based in Washington, DC, the Coalition includes more than 80 member organizations from throughout the United States. Each spring, the Coalition sponsors National LGBT Health Awareness Week. For more information about the Coalition, visitwww.lgbthealth.net .