A Dutch insurance firm plans to offer special healthcare policies for gay and lesbian clients. A spokesperson for the Agis company said the policy had been worked out in co-operation with the COC Dutch gay rights group, and will be available from the beginning of 2008.
"Options are always a good idea, different people, different needs. And however we can highlight whatever specifically plays a role for gay and lesbian people the better."
"We also need to start thinking about health a little bit more broadly than just in terms of medical health. For gays and lesbians in particular that also stretches into mental health, and we may be able to say then that there's more of a need for certain groups of people than for others, based on the level of discrimination that they face."
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One of the problems that gay and lesbian patients often face in the healthcare system is the assumption that they are heterosexual. In this respect, says Betteridge, the new policy will have an important educational effect.
As she explains, a simple question from a doctor, for example, to a lesbian woman about whether or not she is using the contraceptive pill will set a tone for future discussions that she is going to have with that healthcare professional. "It can start on that kind of level, a very simple level of how do you start to develop a trusting relationship with a healthcare provider. You start building a trust relationship and that relationship can be the most important factor in your healthcare."
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Dutch gay rights organisation COC helped AGIS with the details of the new 'gay-friendly' health insurance. |
But as well as alerting care providers to patient's sexuality, the policy could offer more specific benefits as well, with access to clinics and practitioners that are especially welcoming to gay clients, and recognition of same-sex partnerships.
Amongst older gays and lesbians, there's a lot of fear concerning their future and ending up in some kind of institution, an old-age home or something along those lines, and being discriminated against. Another example: a lesbian woman might have a different approach to her own gynaecological healthcare, and might be looking for something different from that kind of a healthcare provider.
All Dutch residents are expected to choose a private insurance company to cover both the obligatory basic package of health insurance and any extra medical care an individual may want to have covered.
In an effort to attract clients, insurance companies in The Netherlands are constantly coming up with targeted policies - and now Agis is blazing a trail as the first company to target the 'pink euro'.
Tags: COC, Dutch healthcare, gays, healthcare, homosexuals, lesbians, Medical insurance