NEW CALIFORNIA LAW FOR LGBT SENIORS ENSURES RESPECTFUL &…
Ground-breaking new legislation was signed by California Governor Jerry Brown earlier this month to ensure lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) senior citizens will receive respectful and competent elder care. Assembly Bill 663 was authored by Assembly member Jimmy Gomez and sponsored by Equality California and the California Senior Legislature before making its way to Sacramento to be signed on October 9, 2013.
As many of the pioneers for equality for the LGBT community enter into their golden years, the new law is designed to help them live out their final years with dignity by integrating LGBT cultural competency instruction into training received by residential care facility administrators. As part of the regular training residential care administrators receive, they will also learn about the unique needs of this community, including the isolation and discrimination many LGBT individuals have had to cope with throughout their lives.
According to SDLGN.com, there are an estimated 1.5 million LGBT elders currently living in the United States and that number will increase to approximately 3 million by 2030. With this new law, California will lead the country in training professional caretakers to recognize the needs of this growing demographic.
When the time comes that you or a family member is no longer able to maintain an independent lifestyle, please contact CaliforniaRegistry to help you find an assisted living facility or elder care services within California that is customized for you.