Another part of the Trump administration just got caught dismantling work on LGBT issues
The Trump administration has acted to ditch data collection on sexuality from a national survey.
Since Trump took power in January, there has been a rapid shift in policy on LGBT issues.
The Department of Education has reversed civil rights protections for transgender people, the Attorney General has shelved government opposition to North Carolina’s anti-LGBT law, and even the White House ditched a website section on LGBT issues.
This week, it has been revealed that the Trump administration’s Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) also appears to have deprioritised LGBT issues.
The Administration for Community Living removed a question about sexual orientation from the National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP), an annual national survey of recipients of services for elderly people.
Removing the question on sexual orientation was the only change made to the survey.
HRC Government Affairs Director David Stacy said: “Today, there are an estimated 1.5 million LGBTQ seniors in America. This is an extremely vulnerable population, many of whom will have to face the challenges of advanced age or illness without the traditional support systems and legal protections that other seniors can take for granted.
“If we do not collect data on LGBTQ seniors, policymakers and advocates can not know the extent of the problems they face.
“HRC implores the Trump Administration to add this crucial question back to the NSOAAP and expand their questions to include data collection on gender identity.”
The question has been removed despite data being collected on the issue for three years without controversy.
According to HRC it comes after the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) withdrew two notices impacting LGBTQ people.
The first notice withdrew a requirement for emergency shelters receiving HUD funding to post information about LGBTQ people’s rights to access shelter safely and in accordance with their gender identity.
The second notice withdrew critical data collection and implementation guidelines for a homelessness prevention initiative targeting LGBTQ youth.
