New Colorado survey spotlights disparities in health care

DENVER — A new Colorado survey highlights major differences in health care for people of color, as well as the LGBTQ community. While the numbers were startling, advocates in the community said they were not surprising.

“We know that that is common in our community,” said Jax Gonzalez, policy director at One Colorado, a LGBTQ+ advocacy organization. “That’s why we’re moving forward with a multilayer approach to increase access, to decrease stigma and to increase resources for people here in Colorado.”

For the survey, the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, a nonpartisan organization, polled 1,400 people. According to the survey, 36% of LGBTQ people rationed medication due to cost. That’s compared with 24% of non-LGBTQ individuals.

“That number I bet would go even higher if we broke it down by identity further,” Gonzalez said. “It is really disheartening to know that such a large majority of my community isn’t able to access care even with how much we’re doing.”

The survey also broke down results pertaining to communities of color with a specific focus on the Latino and Hispanic community. Vanessa Martinez, policy director for COLOR, a Latina reproductive rights group, said she was disheartened by the numbers.

“[It] is quite sad and unfortunately what we continue to see,” she said.

According to the survey, 80% of Latino or Hispanic people went without care because of the cost. That’s compared with 63% of non-Latino individuals.

“This is a problem, and there are things … that we can do about as a community so that the next report that comes out we won’t have to talk about how disheartened it makes us feel,” Martinez said.

Both Martinez and Gonzalez said they believe changing policies, educating providers and expanding health-care access may be the answer to see these disparities diminish.

“I think it just helps us understand where we need to go next in order to increase access to gender-affirming care and health care broadly to people,” Gonzalez said.

The survey also pointed out that LGBTQ and people of color skipped much needed care because they felt disrespected by health care providers. Community advocates hope medical facilities put more resources into training their staff.

> Read the survey below: