AUGUSTA - The Maine House and Senate this week advanced LD 956, sponsored by Rep. Ambureen Rana, D-Bangor, which would require health care facilities to collect patient data related to sexual orientation and gender identity. While health care facilities would be required to incorporate sexual orientation and gender identity questions on their intake forms, patients are not required to answer them.
"I proposed this legislation because of my past work and understanding that collecting sexual orientation and gender identity data in health care facilities is vital to help our providers offer more informed care to their patients, especially as it relates to patients who are transgender," said Rana. "Our health care providers already ask us many questions about our lives. This information is relevant to our care because it changes what care we might need, and it is relevant to forming a trusting and positive relationship with providers. Like our race, ethnicity and tribal status, sexual orientation and gender identity are fundamental parts of who we are."
The federal Uniform Data System, an annual reporting system that provides standardized information about the performance and operation of health centers delivering health care services to underserved communities and vulnerable populations, has included sexual orientation and gender identity data since 2016. Under this proposed legislation, data collected from patients will remain confidential.
"Queer and trans patients deserve providers who ask us the right questions and provide us appropriate care," said Quinn Gormley, executive director of Maine Transgender Network. "Electronic Health Record systems are incredible tools that will continue to improve the health of our population and individual experiences in health care settings. But our health care facilities need a push to ensure they are using them effectively for all of their patients. Requiring facilities to ask for sexual orientation and gender identity data is a necessary step towards this end."
The bill faces additional votes in the House and Senate in the coming days.
Rana is serving her first term in the Maine House and represents House District 21, which includes a portion of Bangor. She serves on the Legislature's Joint Standing Committee on Taxation and the Joint Select Committee on Housing.
Contact:
Brian Lee [Rana], 305-965-2744