Readout of HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra’s Meeting with LGBTQI+ Leaders to Discuss Health Equity

During the meeting, Secretary Becerra reiterated HHS’ commitment to continued partnership with LGBTQI+ leaders and organizations to build on the progress made in advancing health and human services equity for the community

Today, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra hosted leaders from lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI+) civil rights organizations in Washington to discuss actions the Department has taken to advance health equity, increase access to health care, secure non-discrimination protections, and increase access to behavioral health for the LGBTQI+ community.

During the meeting, Secretary Becerra highlighted some of these actions to date, including:

• Strengthening data collection: Progress to increase the collection of  Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) data across HHS programs, which helps HHS achieve its mission and its Healthy People 2030 goals by identifying disparities in health and human services. As identified in the Federal Evidence Agenda on LGBTQI+ Equity, this progress to improve the collection of SOGI data seeks to improve the health and well-being of LGBTQI+ people.
• Investing in health equity: The National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) new notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) to support innovative research to address health disparities among the LGBTQI+ community.
• Supporting LGBTQI+ youth: A newly released ASPE brief on Emerging Practices for Supporting LGBTQI+ Young People Across Human Services Programs, which shares practices for service providers to support the needs and well-being of LGBTQI+ young people in their programs and communities.
• Strengthening civil rights protections: HHS has issued multiple landmark proposed regulations to protect LGBTQI+ individuals and families from discrimination. Those rules include:
  • A proposed rule from HHS’s Office for Civil Rights and the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources (ASFR) proposed changes to the HHS Grant Rule which would protect LGBTQI+ people from discrimination in important health and human services programs by clarifying and reaffirming the prohibition on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in certain statutes.
  • A proposed rule from HHS’s Office for Civil Rights which would update implementation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act to protect against discrimination based on an individual’s HIV status or diagnosis of gender dysphoria. A proposed rule from HHS’s Administration for Children and Families which would ensure LGBTQI+ youth in foster care receive safe and appropriate placements.
  • A proposed rule from HHS’s Office for Civil Rights which would strengthen health care non-discrimination protections for LGBTQI+ patients under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act.

HHS is committed to building on this progress in order to deliver on the promise of health equity for communities that have often been underserved and under-resourced.

The following representatives participated in the meeting:

• Secretary Xavier Becerra, HHS
• ADM Rachel Levine, Assistant Secretary for Health
• Dr. Melanie Egorin, Assistant Secretary for Legislation
• Melanie Fontes Rainer, Director, HHS Office for Civil Rights
• Jess Smith, Acting Director, HHS Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs
• Michael Adams, CEO, SAGE USA
• Carl Baloney Vice President for Public Affairs & Chief Policy Officer, AIDS United
• Brian Bond, Executive Director, PFLAG
• Kahlib Barton-Garcon, Chief Program Officer, True Colors United
• Melanie Willingham-Jaggers, Executive Director, GLSEN
• Casey Pick, Director of Law and Policy, The Trevor Project
• Alex Sheldon, Interim Executive Director, GLMA
• Kelley Robinson, President, Human Rights Campaign (HRC)
• JoDee Winterhof, Senior Vice-President, Policy and Political Affairs, Human Rights Campaign