LGBTQ+ Health and Wellness Resources
Hackensack Meridian Health offers LGBTQ+ care, including:
- Access to culturally competent treatment and prevention services
- Coverage for reconstructive surgical procedures related to sex reassignment
- Coverage for transition-related care, including surgical procedures related to gender confirmation
- Coverage for medical visits or laboratory services
- Pharmaceutical coverage (i.e., hormone replacement therapies)
- Mental health benefits
- Short-term medical leave
- Coverage of routine, chronic or urgent non-transition services
- Infectious disease care
- Family health care
Race, Ethnicity, Language, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity
We ask all patients about race, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation and gender identity. These questions are asked by registration and other staff members. You can also share this information with us using MyChart.
At Hackensack Meridian Health, we believe that learning more about our patients will help us provide the highest quality care. Asking these questions is consistent with the hospital’s nondiscrimination policies and federal, state and local laws prohibiting discrimination and facilitates our commitment to providing the highest-quality care to all. You can learn more by visiting our Race, Ethnicity, Language, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity page.
Summary of Patient Rights
Hackensack Meridian Health patients have the right:
- To courteous treatment with respect for each patient’s dignity and individuality
- To make an informed choice and to give informed consent for treatment
- To an explanation of diagnosis and treatment options
- To refuse medication and treatment to the extent permitted by law and to be informed of the medical consequences of such refusal
- To receive appropriate assessment and treatment for pain
- To effective communication, including a translator as necessary
- To be included in clinical research only when you have given informed consent to participate
Additional patient rights include:
- Freedom from restraints (unless authorized by a physician for limited periods of time)
- A copy of hospital charges and fees for services provided
- To be informed about any need for follow-up care and to receive assistance in obtaining such care
- To receive a summary of your rights as a patient, including hospital grievance and complaint procedures, as well as contact information for hospital staff and the New Jersey Department of Health unit that handles questions and complaints
A Summary of Patient Visitation Rights
- Hackensack Meridian Health hospitals shall respect the patient's visitation rights.
- Visitation rights include the right, subject to patient consent, to receive the visitors whom he/she designates, including, but not limited to, a spouse, a domestic partner (including a same-sex domestic partner), another family member or a friend, and the right to withdraw or deny such consent at any time.
- Visitation shall only be restricted when it has been determined to be clinically necessary, or:
Patient Visitation Rights
Hackensack Meridian Health patients have legal rights:
- To treatment and medical services without discrimination based on sex/gender, race, age, language, religion, ethnicity, disability, citizenship, national origin, culture, marital status, atypical hereditary cellular or blood trait, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, diagnosis, any other category protected by state or federal law, ability to pay, or source of payment
- To exercise all your constitutional, civil and legal rights
Non-Discrimination Policy
As a recipient of funding through Federal Health Care programs, Hackensack Meridian Health does not exclude, deny benefits to, or otherwise discriminate against any person on the ground of race, color, or national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, veteran status, on the basis of disability or age, in sum or substance, ‘any other category protected by state or federal law’, in admission to, participation in, or receipt of services and benefits under any of its programs and activities. This statement is in accordance with the provisions of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) of 2010 (42 U.S.C. 18116). (For further information about this policy, contact Guest Relations at 732-836-4297).
Health Information and Serving the LGBTQ+ Community
- Jane H. Booker Family Health Center, Infectious Disease Clinic (A-Team) at Jersey Shore University Medical Center
- AIDS Outreach Program at Hackensack University Medical Center
- Early Intervention Program at Raritan Bay Medical Center
- Hackensack Meridian Health Affiliations - Alyssa R. Golas, M.D., FACS
- Hackensack Meridian Health Affiliations - Sean Blake Herman, M.D.
- Hackensack Meridian Health Affiliations - Raquel Kristin S. Ong, M.D.
- Family Equality
- GLMA
- Collaborations with Hyacinth, Pride Center, GSE
- LGBTQ+ Affirming Providers
Additional Resources
Lesbian, Gay, Bixsexual, Transgender (LGBTQ+) patients have unique health care needs and they should discuss it with their health care provider.- Ten Things Lesbians Should Discuss With Their Health Care Provider
- Ten Things Gay Men Should Discuss With Their Health Care Provider
- Ten Things Bisexuals Should Discuss With Their Health Care Provider
- Ten Things Transgender Persons Should Discuss With Their Health Care Provider
- HealthyPeople.gov
- Human Rights Campaign
- Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLADD)
- Gay and Lesbian Independent School Teachers Network (GLSEN)
- Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG)
- Drugwatch
- National LGBTQ+ Health Education Center
- Fenway Health Institute
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention