LGBTQ+ Veteran care

Connect with a care coordinator

Care we provide at VA Greater Los Angeles health care

Our LGBTQ+ Veteran care coordinators can answer your questions, advocate for your right to quality care, handle complaints or concerns you have about your care, and help you get started with any of our services for LGBTQ+ Veterans. These include:

• We promote the health, welfare, and dignity of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer+ (LGBTQ+) Veterans and their families. We focus on ensuring a safe, welcoming, and affirming environment when providing you with sensitive and high-quality health care services like:
• Hormone Therapy
• Voice and communication training
• Family planning 
• Gender affirming prosthetics
• Group Therapy
• Substance use and alcohol treatment
• Testing and treatment for HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STI)
• Mental health care
• Assessments and letters of support for gender-affirming surgeries and hormone therapy

Policies and practices to know

The care coordinator can help you get started with care or with navigating any of these issues.

Visitation: A same-sex partner, family member, friend, or other individual can be present with the patient for emotional support during the course of the patient's stay.

Definition of family: "Family" may include individual(s) not legally related to the individual. Family members include spouses, domestic partners, different-sex and same-sex significant others.

Advance directives: Veterans may designate any person as a decision-maker for care if they won't be able to make these decisions themselves. This includes same-sex partners. Advance directive agents are chosen by the Veteran and do not need to be biologically related.

Documentation in medical records: VA Greater Los Angeles maintains the confidentiality of information about sexual orientation, sexual behavior, and gender identity, just like any other private health information.

Changing name or sex in records: Your name in your medical record will reflect your legal name. The sex in your medical record should reflect your self-identified gender. You have the right to request that your name and sex are updated as appropriate. There are established procedures for changing your name and sex with the VA Privacy Officer.