According to a new national online survey, healthcare costs ( 50% ) and the lack of adequate health insurance ( 43% ) are cited as the most common reasons why lesbians have delayed obtaining healthcare. When asked to identify what current health issue deserves the most attention from healthcare professionals and public policy makers from among a list of 14 issues, two in five ( 41% ) lesbians said that health insurance coverage, followed by nutrition/exercise ( 14% ) and obesity ( 12% ) deserve the most attention.
These are some of the results of a nationwide online survey of 2,209 U.S. adults, of whom 119 have self-identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual ( GLB ) . In addition, 341 self-identified U.S. lesbian adults were surveyed. The survey was conducted online Jan. 11-16, 2005 by Harris Interactive® in conjunction with the Mautner Project, The National Lesbian Health Organization.
Overall, three quarters ( 75% ) of lesbians ( compared to 54% of heterosexuals ) have delayed obtaining healthcare for at least one reason. Younger lesbians ( aged 18–35 ) are more likely than older lesbians ( aged 50 and over ) to have delayed obtaining healthcare.
'Barriers to accessing healthcare, whether they are financial, institutional or cultural, can be devastating for lesbians with chronic or life threatening illnesses,' said Kathleen DeBold, executive director of the Mautner Project. 'Stigma and the potential for discrimination has, for years, been a major obstacle for lesbians and gays seeking appropriate healthcare. This survey is another in a line of important wake-up calls for the medical establishment.'
Additional findings from the survey:
— All adults ( 35% ) think that health insurance coverage deserves the most attention from healthcare professionals and public policy makers, followed by cancer ( 16% ) and obesity and HIV/AIDS ( 9% each ) .
While GLB respondents ( 18% overall ) and lesbians ( 9% ) think that HIV/AIDS deserves the most attention, fitness is also high on their list ( 13% and 14% respectively ) .
— Among lesbians, 16 percent report that they have delayed obtaining healthcare because they were concerned they would be discriminated against.
— Lesbians are more likely than heterosexuals to say that bad experiences with healthcare providers in the past has caused them to delay obtaining healthcare ( 27% vs. 12% ) .
— Three quarters of lesbians ( 74% ) who have experienced discrimination at a doctor's office believe that they were discriminated against because of their sexual orientation. One in five ( 19% ) feels they were discriminated against because of their physical or mental disability and five percent said it was because of their gender identity or expression.
— Heterosexuals are more likely than lesbians to believe that they were discriminated against because of their income level ( 35% vs. 20% ) .
— The top two health risks lesbians are worried about for themselves are being overweight ( 17% ) and being out of shape/not physically fit ( 16% )
'Getting lesbians to the doctor would be a huge first step in preventing chronic illness among the nation's lesbian population; but to accomplish that, there will have to be a significant change in the way that doctors and their staffs and their lesbian clients communicate,' said Amari Sokoya Pearson-Fields, deputy director of the Mautner Project. 'If doctors, nurses and other medical professionals are truly committed to providing the best care to all their patients and are sensitive to the unique needs of their lesbian patients, then this can improve.'
