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Essential tips for your COVID-free travel
COVID-19 will make travel a bit more complicated this summer. Going to Europe? Taking a cruise? Visiting Hawaii, San Juan or St. Lucia? Or maybe you are planning a road trip? The rules for traveling responsibly ...
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New Broadway Youth Center being readied for 2021 opening
Work continues on Howard Brown Health's (Howard Brown) new 20,000 square-foot Broadway Youth Center (BYC) facility at 1053 W. Irving Park Rd. BYC has spent years looking for a permanent home. After launching in Lake View, ...
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Howard Brown Health looks ahead to post-pandemic Chicago
As more Chicagoans get vaccinated against the COVID-19 infection, officials at Howard Brown Health (Howard Brown) are preparing their responses to a health landscape that will likely be much different from what it was before the ...
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HIV at 40: Erie Family Health Center, focused on helping at-risk communities
HIV/AIDS disproportionately affects Black communities—with Black gay and bisexual Black men and Black trans women being the most affected population than any other group in the country. More specifically, one in two Black MSM (men who ...
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HIV at 40: Dr. Anthony Fauci on the early days of another pandemic
Dr. Anthony Fauci has been called "America's doctor"—and with good reason. His face and advice regarding COVID have seemingly been omnipresent since the virus affected the masses early in 2020. However, decades before the word "coronavirus" ...
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Howard Brown Health announces first Fellowship Class of Future Public Leaders Program
--From a Howard Brown Health press release
(Chicago, Ill., June 7, 2021) - Howard Brown Health is honored to announce the first six fellows to receive paid internships as part of the Gregory Shapen Public Health Fellowship Endowment Fund. The program was established ...
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Harold J. Phillips appointed director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy
--From a press release
Statement from Jeffrey S. Crowley, distinguished scholar and director of the Infectious Disease Initiatives at the O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University Law Center: I applaud President Biden's appointment of ...
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Gov. Pritzker issues guidelines for Illinois reopening on June 11
--From a press release
SPRINGFIELD — Following weeks of steady decreases in new positive COVID-19 cases and with over 67% of residents age 18 and older receiving their first vaccine dose, Governor JB Pritzker is releasing guidelines for Phase 5 ...
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Planned Parenthood Illinois launches COVID-19 vaccine awareness campaign
--From a press release
CHICAGO — Planned Parenthood Illinois Action (PPIA) is kicking off a summer-long COVID-19 vaccine awareness campaign with two virtual Community Conversations on June 17 and June 24 (Spanish language event) ...
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Howard Brown, partners launch research collaborative on COVID and LGBTQs
In order to bridge the gap in knowledge about COVID-19 health experiences for LGBTQ people, five federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) that specialize in reducing barriers to care for LGBTQ populations—along with The PRIDE Study, the ...
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Celebrating 5M LGBTQ+ with disabilities for Pride 2021
--From a press release
Washington, D.C., June 1 — June once again marks National LGBTQ+ Pride Month and offers the nation the opportunity to reflect on the incredible contributions of the LGBTQ+ community. Our nation is at its best when ...
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Wisconsin Governor blocks use of federal money for conversion therapy for minors
--From a press release
MADISON, WI — Today, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers signed an Executive Order directing the Department of Health Services (DHS), the Department of Children and Families (DCF), and the Department of ...
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GLAAD at Pride: Protect the most vulnerable among us
--From a press release
New York, NY - Tuesday, June 1, 2021 - GLAAD, the world's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, today released a statement to honor the start of Pride Month, highlighting the ...
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Chicago drag personality and store offer 'Bella Box by Denali'
Chicago drag queen/figure skater Denali Foxx (from season 13 of RuPaul's Drag Race) is partnering with the Chicago "highbrid" boutique Canna Bella Lux and the Chicago LGBTQ+ collective Peach Presents on the Bella Box by Denali—a ...
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Kelsey Louie to step down as CEO of GMHC
After seven years leading the New York City-based HIV/AIDS services organization GMHC (formerly known as Gay Men's Health Crisis), Kelsey Louie is stepping down, Gay City News reported. According to a Facebook post, Louie is planning ...
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Lightfoot announces May 28 reopening of 22 Chicago beaches
Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and the Chicago Park District announced 22 beaches will open this Friday, May 28, for the 2021 season. The city released a video (at https://youtu.be/FMpaaHD4IkQ) that shows Lightfoot knocking over a cardboard ...
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Older LGBT people twice as likely to be laid off during the pandemic as non-LGBT people
--From a press release
Older LGBT people twice as likely to be laid off during the pandemic as non-LGBT people Data collected in fall 2020 finds that LGBT people ages 45 and older—in particular older LGBT people of color—have disproportionately ...
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Pride Parade date announced
PRIDEChicago announced that the date of this year's Pride Parade is Sunday, Oct. 3. The Parade route will remain the same as past years. The path will begin at Montrose Avenue and Broadway and then move ...
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ACLU sues Arkansas over ban on health care for transgender youth
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a lawsuit on behalf of four transgender youth and their families as well as two doctors challenging an Arkansas law that prohibits health care professionals ...
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Illinois Holocaust Museum to host "Reflecting on LGBTQ+ Pride in the Time of COVID-19"
--From a press release
Skokie, IL — On June 30, Illinois Holocaust Museum will host a thoughtful reflection and celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride Month with a dynamic panel of thought leaders and advocates. Since the 1970s, the last Sunday in ...
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HRC, leading policy, health organizations call for LGBTQ-inclusive sexual education
--From a press release
WASHINGTON — Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, the educational arm of the nation's largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization, in partnership with leading ...
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Family Acceptance Project has new Asian-language posters for families with LGBTQ kids
--From a press release
San Francisco, CA, May 19, 2021 …… In conjunction with Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month in May, the Family Acceptance Project at San Francisco State University is releasing a series of 8 new ...
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Trevor Project releases 2021 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health
--From a press release
WASHINGTON, DC — May 19, 2021 — The Trevor Project, the world's largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people ...
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MUSIC Lightfoot, Arwady officially announce return of Lollapalooza
On May 18, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Allison Arwady and Lollapalooza organizers announced that the festival will return to Grant Park at full capacity July 29-Aug. 1. The lineup will ...
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AG Letitia James leads support of HHS effort to undo Trump era health care rule
--From a press release
NEW YORK — New York Attorney General Letitia James today continued her fight to protect the health care and reproductive rights of patients across New York and the rest of the nation. Attorney General James today ...
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Gov. Pritzker aligns Illinois with CDC guidance for fully vaccinated people
--From a press release
SPRINGFIELD — Following guidance from the CDC that fully vaccinated people can stop wearing a mask and practicing social distancing in most indoor and outdoor settings, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public ...
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Illinois Court Help launches in response to pandemic
Illinois Court Help launched May 17 to help connect people to the resources and information they need to go to court in Illinois. It is the first personalized court information service offered by the Illinois Courts ...
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NATIONAL Conversion therapy, AIDS event, COVID measure, gay Republican, UNO
In Kentucky, the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council voted unanimously to ban conversion therapy for LGBTQ minors, LEX18.com reported. The vote made Lexington the third city in Kentucky, along with Louisville and Covington, to ban the controversial ...
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COVID: CDC says fully vaccinated people don't need to wear masks indoors
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said that people fully vaccinated against COVID-19 do not need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors or outdoors, except under ...
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Mayor Lightfoot expands vaccine exemption with Bridge Phase May 14
--From a press release
CHICAGO — Today, Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot along with CDPH Commissioner Allison Arwady, M.D., and BACP Commissioner Rosa Escareño announced a full expansion of the Vaccine Exemption when Chicago enters the Bridge Phase of reopening tomorrow, ...
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Gov. Pritzker confirms Illinois will enter Bridge Phase of reopening May 14
--From a press release
CHICAGO —Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) confirmed today the entire state will move into the Bridge Phase of the Restore Illinois reopening plan tomorrow, Friday, May 14. The Bridge ...
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UK to ban conversion therapy
Britain will move to ban conversion therapy and provide more support to those in the LGBT community who have undergone the treatment, as part of its post-pandemic government agenda, Reuters reported. Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government ...
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Biden administration restores anti-bias protections, groups comment
--From a press release
The following statement is from Susan R. Bailey, M.D., President, American Medical Association "The Biden administration did the right thing by terminating a short-lived effort to allow discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation when seeking ...
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Gov. Pritzker plans vaccination of workers in commercial buildings as companies open
--From a press release
Chicago — To further expand convenient opportunities for Illinoisans to get vaccinated, Governor JB Pritzker launched a new program today that offers building workers and returning office staff a chance to get their shot at work. ...
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Dance for Life to take place in person (and for free) Aug. 26
Chicago Dancers United (CDU)—which supports the health and wellness of Chicago's professional dance community—announced that its primary annual fundraiser, Dance for Life, will take place live and in person Thursday ...
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HHS: Prohibition on sex discrimination includes sexual orientation, gender identity
--From a press release
Washington D.C. — Today, the Department of Health and Human Services announced that the Office for Civil Rights will interpret and enforce Section 1557 and Title IX's prohibitions on discrimination based on sex to include: (1) ...
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COVID Illinois to partially relax restrictions May 14, may fully reopen June 11
On May 6, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced the entire state will move into the Bridge Phase of the Restore Illinois reopening plan beginning Friday, May 14. The Bridge Phase will allow for expanded capacity limits ...
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One-third of LGBTQ college students had housing disruption during COVID-19 pandemic
--From a press release
A new study from the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law conducted in collaboration with the Point Foundation, the nation's largest LGBTQ scholarship fund, finds that the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the educational opportunities, financial ...
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COVID Report: Herd immunity unlikely to happen anytime soon
Public health experts and scientists do not believe herd immunity is attainable in the near future because of proliferating COVID-19 variants and decreasing COVID-19 vaccination rates, according to a Politico item that cites a New York ...
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Pat Parker GCLS 2021 Trailblazer Award recipient
--From a press release
Pat Parker, a poet, activist, and artist will receive the Golden Crown Literary Society's 2021 Trailblazer Award. Parker shaped the civil rights, women's rights, and gay rights movements of the late '60s and '70s in the ...
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NIH to invest $29 million to address COVID-19 disparities
--From a press release
To bolster research to help communities disproportionately affected by COVID-19, the National Institutes of Health is funding $29 million in additional grants for the NIH Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against ...
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Advocates join to strengthen bill on K-12 health, safety education
--From a press release
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Advocates for the Responsible Education for Adolescent and Children's Health Act (REACH Act), led by Planned Parenthood Illinois Action (PPIA) and Equality Illinois (EI), worked with the ...
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Mayor Lightfoot announces launch of Open Chicago
--From a press release
CHICAGO — Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot today announced the launch of Open Chicago, the latest initiative to safely and fully reopen the city. Open Chicago's initial programming will feature activated, re-imagined, and pop-up spaces for Chicago ...
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New report examines bans on medical care for trans youth
The Movement Advancement Project (MAP) released a new policy spotlight report, "Efforts to Ban Health Care for Transgender Youth." In 2021 alone, legislatures in 22 states have introduced bills to ban best practice medical care for ...
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Study: Gender-affirming surgery improves mental health outcomes among transgender people
--From a press release
BOSTON, April 28, 2021—A new study published today in JAMA Surgery (https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamasurgery/article-abstract/2779429) found that gender-affirming surgery is associated with improved mental health ...
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Navy Pier to begin phased reopening April 30
Navy Pier will begin its phased reopening Friday, April 30, restoring public access to select outdoor spaces and attractions and cautiously resuming partial operations with public health and safety at the forefront. As part of this ...
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SAIC hosts 'Debunking Conversion Therapy' virtual panel
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) hosted a virtual panel, "Debunking Conversion Therapy," on April 23 that focused on how people have been negatively impacted by conversion therapy, what the Bible says and ...
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Queer health sciences art: U of Michigan students translate research through art
ANN ARBOR—Tanaka Chavanduka was inspired to reconsider his communication methods after a trip to a national conference on HIV in Washington, D.C. While there, he also visited the National Portrait Gallery and the National Museum of ...
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CDC updates mask-wearing guidelines
On April 27, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued new guidance on outdoor mask use for fully vaccinated Americans, CNN.com noted. Fully vaccinated people can now unmask at small outdoor gatherings, or ...
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New Center for Applied Transgender Studies responds to trans misinformation
Combatting bad information and promoting accurate education on transgender issues are the focuses at the Center for Applied Transgender Studies, which officially opened March 31. The independent, nonprofit, research organization ...
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AMA to states: Stop interfering in health care of transgender children
--From a press release
CHICAGO — On April 26, the American Medical Association (AMA) urged governors to oppose state legislation that would prohibit medically necessary gender transition-related care minor patients, calling such efforts "a ...
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NATIONAL 'Trans in the South,' N.C. ordinance, HIV lawsuits, Andrew Yang
The Campaign for Southern Equality (CSE) released the 2021 edition of Trans in the South: A Directory of Trans-Affirming Health & Legal Service Providers, a press release noted. Nearly 400 ...
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COVID Center on Halsted holding testing clinic and issuing vaccines April 30-May 2 [UPDATE]
Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St.—in partnership with Northshore Clinical Labs—will host a COVID testing clinic on its third floor on Friday, April 30-Sunday, May, 2, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The venue will also administer Moderna vaccines during ...
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Belting for Life Sunday May 16, streaming through May 31
--From a press release
CHICAGO - Jeff Award-winning director and HIV+ activist Christopher Pazdernik presents the 6th annual Belting for Life (formerly known as Chris' Birthday Belt Fest), an annual benefit concert for Howard Brown Health, one of the nation's ...
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Simmons moves to gather data on how COVID-19 has harmed LGBTQ+ communities
--From a press release
SPRINGFIELD — To better determine how the COVID-19 pandemic has harmed LGBTQIA+ communities in Illinois, State Sen. Mike Simmons (D-Chicago) passed legislation out of an Illinois Senate committee Thursday that ...
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Rev. Elle Dowd of Illinois joins Planned Parenthood Clergy Advocacy Board
CHICAGO— Today, April 14, 2021, The Rev. Elle Dowd from Chicago, Illinois officially joined the Clergy Advocacy Board (CAB) of Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA). The CAB leads the ...
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More than 45,000 trans youth put at risk of losing access to gender-affirming care
--From a Williams Institute press release
An estimated 45,100 transgender youth ages 13 and older in the U.S. are at risk of being denied gender-affirming medical care due to proposed and enacted state bans, according to the Williams Institute at UCLA School ...
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Illinois first state to extend Medicaid postpartum benefits to 12 months
Gov. JB Pritzker announced that Illinois is the first state in the nation to extend full Medicaid benefits from 60 days to 12 months postpartum, following the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approval ...
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NATIONAL College items, Easter rally, mental-health study, Chuck Schumer
The NCAA LGBTQ OneTeam—a group of NCAA-trained facilitators at colleges across the country—published an open letter condemning the actions taken by 28 states across the country to introduce, pass and ...
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HIV/AIDS Report: Vaccine may hold promise
Preliminary data from an early stage clinical trial out of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, suggests that a new HIV vaccine may hold promise, ABC News ...
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New study shows discrimination, stigma, family pressure drive transgender "detransition"
--From a press release
BOSTON—A new study published in LGBT Health found that 13.1% of currently identified transgender people have detransitioned at some point in their lives, but that 82.5% of those who have detransitioned attribute their decision to at ...
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COVID Chicago to follow national vaccine-eligibility call
As Vice President Kamala Harris visited Chicago on April 6, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the city will meet President Joe Biden's call to open vaccine eligibility to all U.S. adults by April 19, The Chicago Tribune ...
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Sisters Walk the Walk In New Community Wellness Walk Program: Sister Outsider
--From a press release
CHICAGO, IL- Working towards a socially just world can begin in one neighborhood and that's exactly what Sisters in Cinema a Chicago-based 501(c)3 is setting to accomplish in their new program Sister Outsider, scheduled to launch ...
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COVID: CDC updates domestic travel guidelines
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued an update regarding domestic travel—and eased restrictions for travelers who are fully vaccinated. The CDC website stated, as of April 3: People who are fully vaccinated with ...
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AIDS Healthcare Foundation Lake View clinic holds ribbon-cutting
Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) held a ribbon-cutting event for its Lake View facility on March 31. The clinic, 3311 N. Halsted St., is housed within AHF's Out of the Closet thrift store and will ...
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Planned Parenthood of Illinois received $20,000 COVID-19 grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois
--From a press release
CHICAGO—To help ease the ongoing needs created by the COVID-19 pandemic, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) awarded Planned Parenthood of Illinois (PPIL) a $20,000 grant to support operations and enhance the delivery of ...
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COVID Lightfoot won't follow Illinois regarding vaccine eligibility
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the city won't open the vaccine to everyone 16 and older along with the rest of the state in two weeks because of a "quantum leap" in COVID cases, according to ...
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Cook County exceeds 10,000 COVID-19 deaths
--From a Cook County press release
The Medical Examiner's Office confirmed the County's 10,000th death due to COVID-19 infection this morning, just over a year after the virus claimed its first victim here. "We mourn with the 10,000 families in our community ...
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Wisconsin Supreme Court strikes down mask mandate
On March 31, the Wisconsin Supreme Court struck down Gov. Tony Evers' statewide face mask mandate, WISN.com reported. The ruling was four to three. Republican lawmakers filed the suit last October. They said the governor did ...
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Senate confirms Levine as first out trans federal official
On March 24, the U.S. Senate confirmed Dr. Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health in the Department of Health and Human Services—making her the first openly transgender federal official to be confirmed by that governmental ...
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Dr. Rachel L. Levine confirmed as HHS Assistant Secretary for Health, Lambda responds
--From a Lambda Legal press release
(Washington, D.C.) — Today, the United States Senate confirmed the appointment of Dr. Rachel L. Levine to lead the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health of the Department of Health and Human Services, a critical ...
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Freedom & Opportunity for All Coalition formed to support Equality Act
--From a press release
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, a new national campaign advocating for urgent passage of the Equality Act launched with support from hundreds of the nation's top leaders in civil rights, faith, education, health care, and advocacy. The ...
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Arkansas legislature passes most extreme, deadly anti-LGBTQ healthcare bill in U.S.
--From a press release
Little Rock, AR—March 18, 2021—Today, the civil rights watchdog American Atheists denounced passage (32-1) by the Arkansas Senate of SB 289, the most extreme denial of healthcare bill in the country. The bill, having already passed ...
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COVID Pritzker announces vaccine eligibility for those 16+ will start April 12
On March 18, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike announced a metrics-based, vaccination-informed framework for Illinois to advance to Phase 5 ...
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National Health Awareness Week will take place March 22-26
The National Coalition for LGBT Health announced that the 19th annual National LGBT Health Awareness Week will take place March 22-26. The week's theme is "OUT for Equity." This theme arises from a word cloud of ...
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