Legislation is already in place in New York that establishes a bill of rights for residents of long-term care facilities who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or living with HIV.
Very specifically, nursing homes and their staff are now prohibited from discriminating against any resident based on actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or HIV status.
Specifically, the S.1783A/A.372A legislation combats discrimination and mitigates the isolation faced by many older LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers, and those living with HIV, in long-term care facilities. Or that they are simply not accepted.
This regulatory step builds on existing anti-discrimination protections already established in the New York Human Rights Law by prohibiting these facilities from making decisions that have in some cases evicted a resident from a senior care facility.
“LGBTQIA+ and HIV-positive seniors are among our most vulnerable populations. Today we are taking steps to ensure that all New Yorkers, regardless of who they are, who they love, or their HIV status, find safety. Hate will never have a place in New York,” Governor Kathy Hochul stressed when signing the legislation.
Humanity and dignity
One of the criteria of this initiative is that LGBTQ+ older adults can be authentic, without fear of being discriminated against as they age.
“As we commemorate World HIV-AIDS Prevention Day, it is important to remember that this virus still affects more than 100,000 New Yorkers, and this bill goes a long way to recognizing the humanity and dignity of those living with this disease.” ”said Assemblyman Harry Bronson.
This legislative measure falls within the context of a reality that activists have warned about in recent years: The HIV-positive population was aging, because antiretroviral therapies successfully prolong people’s lives. Indeed, medical science today speaks of a controllable disease, which a few years ago was a death sentence.
In fact, the New York State Department of Health (NYS) estimated that by 2020, 70% of people living with HIV would be 50 years of age or older.
This “statistical number” imposes many challenges for New York and the need to reorient attention towards thousands of seropositive patients (HIV carriers) for whom this infection, in itself, does not represent a problem, but loneliness and wounds do. left by years of aggression, stigma and prejudice. And all the uncertainties that getting older means.
A few years ago, without the treatments developed in recent years, the virus used to evolve into AIDS. In the vast majority of cases, those infected ended up dying from one or more opportunistic diseases. Worldwide, more than half of people with HIV are over 50 years old. A decade ago, this percentage was only 8%. Estimates are that by 2030 the figure will reach 80%.
Likewise, Darcy Connors, the executive director of SAGE (Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders) interpreted that this state declaration will help combat the stigma that affects New Yorkers living with HIV and will empower people LGBTQ+ elders to be open about their identities, without fear of discrimination in long-term care settings.
“This group has waited too long to obtain these safeguards that will allow them to age with dignity and respect,” she said.
This article is originally published on eldiariony.com
