Cross Cutting Issues in LGBT Health and Public Policy from the Williams Institute

Health issues, health policy, and general public policy are closely intertwined. This has never been more pertinent in the area of LGBT public health than in recent years, when, in the United States, LGBT health issues have risen to the public's, and public policy, attention. In the past couple of years the Institute of Medicine published its report on LGBT health; the Department of Health and Human Services forwarded numerous policies; and state legislators and courts across the country have grappled with questions related to the health and well-being of LGBT populations, such as marriage equality, parenting and adoption, and health coverage. In this symposium panel, researchers from the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law present research from a variety of disciplinary perspectives. In each research area, presenters will discuss how research findings inform public policy. The first presenter will address what demography research teaches us about defining the LGB population and how to measure who is LGB. The second presenter will describe research on patterns of lesbians and bisexual women disclosing sexual orientation in medical encounters and how this affects health outcomes. The third presenter will describe the impact of design and usage of public bathrooms on the health of trans people. The fourth presenter will report on s study of black lesbians to describe relationships among race, sexuality, gender, and health. The fifth presenter will describe freedom-of speech critiques leveled at attempts reduced school-based antigay bullying by reducing stigma and assess policy implications to address these critics.