Survey: 1 In 4 US Gays Lack Health Insurance
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff Posted: May 19, 2008 - 3:00 pm ET (Washington)
Nearly one in four gay and lesbian adults lack health insurance and are nearly twice as likely as their heterosexual counterparts to have no health insurance coverage according to a new national survey released Monday. The online survey, conducted by Harris Interactive, found that 22 percent of gay and lesbian survey respondents reported having no health insurance, compared to only 12 percent of heterosexual adults in the survey.

  Isolation an age-old issue for gay seniors
By Clem Richardson, Brroklyn Daily News, Monday, May 12th 2008
Many aging baby boomers are about to find out some of what gay people have been dealing with for the past few decades. Aging is too often about isolation; families and friends die, often taking a person's social networks with them.

John Genke, Ty Martin and Emily Vargas, social worker, Harlem program manager and social worker, respectively, for SAGE, Services & Advocacy for Gay, Bisexual, Lesbian and Transgender Elders, said isolation is something gay New Yorkers have been dealing with for years, stoked by twin scourges of homophobia and the AIDS epidemic.

  Survey sheds light on LGBs
By Bob Roehr, Bay Area Reporter, 05/08/2008
The clearest picture yet of the identity, political attitudes, and civic engagement of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals is emerging from the largest and most rigorous survey of that community ever conducted. The political scientists who conducted the study unveiled their findings at a forum in Washington, D.C. on April 30.

  More Grey, Less Gay
By Bill Schoell, New York Blade, Friday, March 28, 2008
An Age-Friendly New York public forum explores the needs of older gay people. The city’s senior population is predicted to double in two decades: "There's as much ageism in the LGBT community as there is homophobia in the straight community," said one resident. Another complained that gay senior organizations place too much emphasis on HIV and AIDS. Someone else noted that the elderly often go back in the closet once they're in a senior center.

  Gay bars adjusting to a new reality
By Stacey Vanek-Smith, Amercian Public Media, 25th April 2008,
"Fortune Magazine's recent list of 10 businesses facing extinction includes record stores, crop dusting, telemarketing and . . . gay bars? That one caught our eye because gay business in general is booming. Stacey Vanek-Smith checked it out.

  'You're going to be gay' Book examines childhood of gay locals
By Matt Schaefer, APR. 18, 2008
"Stereotypes are funny," said Shann Carr, stirring a cup of tea at Michael's Diner in Rancho Mirage. Advertisement She flips her book open to a page of a girl in a football uniform. "It might not be politically correct, but sometimes stereotypes are there for a reason," she said. Carr, a lesbian stand-up comedian, is the author of a new book, "You're Going to be Gay!" She points to a photo of a boy in a spandex figure skating outfit. "I mean, come on!" she laughed. "He knew!" The soft-cover book contains the childhood photos of 50 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender adults, alongside funny quotes about growing up gay.

  Testosterone May Improve Mental Function
From The Harvard Men’s Health Watch January 3, 2008
When we think about the powers of testosterone, we usually do not consider mental processes. However, research suggests that testosterone levels may affect men’s cognitive performance, reports the January 2008 issue of Harvard Men’s Health Watch. All the body’s attributes change with age, and mental functions are no exception. Memory is the most fragile mental function. With age, new learning is slower, new information is processed less carefully, and details often slip. These changes give rise to the “senior moment” in healthy elders and to cognitive impairment and dementia in others. Testosterone levels decline with age, just when memory begins to slow. Might falling hormone levels account for some of the problem? Perhaps, says Harvard Men’s Health Watch.

  Bill to protect LGBT seniors passes Senate health committee
By by: Ali Bay, Equality California, OIA Newswire
The Senate Health Committee today passed legislation that would help create an environment that is free from discrimination for LGBT seniors in nursing homes and senior care facilities [in California]. Senate Bill 1729, authored by Sen. Carole Migden, D-San Francisco, and sponsored by Equality California, would train licensed health professionals who care for seniors about the unique needs of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

  Masturbation: It’s Great Fun & Good for Your Health!
By Wire Reports, Gaysofla
A recent study conducted by the National Cancer Institute found that frequent masturbation protects men from prostate cancer! The US study, which followed nearly 30,000 men over eight years, showed that those that ejaculated most frequently were significantly less likely to get prostate cancer. The results back the findings of a smaller Australian study revealed by New Scientist in July 2003 that asserted that masturbation was good for men. In the US study, the group with the highest lifetime average of ejaculation - 21 times per month - were a third less likely to develop the cancer than the reference group, who ejaculated four to seven times a month.

  Drinking accelerates onset of Alzheimer's
By Roger Highfield, Daily Telegraph Science Editor, 18/04/2008
People who have more than two alcoholic drinks a day develop Alzheimer’s disease five years earlier than those who do not drink, a comprehensive study linking the condition to lifestyle has found. Those who smoke are affected by the illness two years earlier than non-smokers, while those who smoke and drink are likely to hasten the onset of the disease by seven years. advertisement People who suffer from high cholesterol in middle age are one and a half times more likely to go on to develop Alzheimer’s.

  Supporters of gay marriage ban seek help from seniors
By Bill Cotterell, Florida Capital Bureau, Tampa Bay's 10 News
Supporters of a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage in Florida began a 10-city campaign Thursday to counteract a major argument mounted against the proposal that it would infringe on rights of elderly couples who choose to live together without marrying. John Stemberger, the Orlando lawyer who headed the Florida4Marriage.org petition campaign that put the amendment to a statewide vote, announced the new campaign dubbed Yes2Marriage.org. The referendum is Amendment 2 on the Nov. 4 ballot. The group scheduled rallies and news conferences from Pensacola to Miami, featuring retirees and elderly voters who support the amendment defining marriage as a legal union of one man and one woman. If adopted, it would forbid legal recognition of any union that is "the substantial equivalent" of marriage, which opponents claim might be interpreted to deny domestic-partner benefits to heterosexuals as well as gay couples.

  Gay and lesbian seniors home proposed for Vancouver
By Tuesday, April 15, 2008, CBC News
A seniors home for gays and lesbians in the East Vancouver neighbourhood of Mount Pleasant could be the first of its kind in Canada. So far, the project is nothing more than a proposal, but already more than 30 people have plunked down a $1,000 deposit since it was first advertised two weeks ago, according to the U.S. developer. The plan is for a condo development featuring living units, a communal dining room, a fitness centre, a lounge and cabaret. Dean Malone, the president of Plum Living Properties, said the proposal for Vancouver will fill a community need. His company has already completed a similar project in New Mexico and has others underway in San Francisco and Palm Springs.

  Being gay adds to fears about growing old
BY Margaret Deritter, Kalamazoo Gazette, Wednesday, April 09, 2008
A Kalamazoo lesbian who did diversity training at local nursing homes says she wouldn't want to think about moving into a retirement home or having to live in a nursing home.

  Gay graveyard opened in Copenhagen
Sydney Morning Herald, April 8, 2008 - 7:20PM
A special graveyard has been opened for Danish homosexuals in Copenhagen where the organisation Rainbow has reserved 36 places for funeral urns, reports said. The organisation has an option for a further 12 places in a section of the municipal Assistens cemetery in the Danish capital where famed Danish writers HC Andersen and Soren Kierkegaard are buried. Ivan Larsen said he and his partner, Ove Carlsen, felt they wanted to be close also after death, and co-founded Rainbow a year ago that offers its members a funeral urn site for 2,500 Danish kroner ($A567.69).

  Senior Center One Of Nation's First For Gays, Lesbians
NBC11.com, 4th April 2008
California is home to one of the first gay senior centers in the country. Camellia Assisted Living in Fair Oaks, Calif., the first center in California to cater to gay and lesbian seniors, according to its owner. The assisted living facility is set up more like a bed and breakfast than a traditional senior center. The owners say they have a business model designed to tap into the growing number of elder gays and lesbians needing assistance.

  A little afternoon delight with your aunt
Sydney Star Observer - Issue 912 - Published 2/04/2008
Want to see what happens when over three hundred gay and lesbian senior citizens get friendly in the dark? Then get along to a delightful, delicious and de-lovely afternoon that’s set to put the silver back into the silver screen. Afternoon Delight is a gay and lesbian movie matinee and tea party presented by ACON, Queer Screen and the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care as part of the official program of events for Seniors Week in Sydney, Australia.

  Pension victory for same-sex partners at Euro court
By Tony Grew, Pink News, 1st April 2008 12:03
Gay and lesbian activists today welcomed a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg on the rights of same-sex partners to 'survivor pensions.' The court ruled that a German gay man is entitled to a payment from the pension of his dead partner. The insurer had rejected his claim to the allowance of €6,400 on the grounds they only make such payments to spouses and not registered partners.

  NY Court Strikes Down Gay Pension Ruling
By by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff Posted: March 31, 2008 - 5:00 pm ET (New York City)
A New York appeals court has vacated the ruling of a lower court that a gay man was not entitled to spousal health insurance benefits even though he and his spouse were lawfully married in Canada. Duke Funderburke, 72, married his partner of 42 years, Brad Davis, 67, in October of 2004 in a ceremony in Ontario, Canada.

  Philanthropists ensure gay community's future
By Anastasia Ustinova, Chronicle Staff Writer Monday, March 31, 2008
In the past three decades, gay philanthropies such as Horizon Foundation, Pride Foundation and Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice have helped shape today's lesbian and gay community, funneling millions of dollars into numerous HIV/AIDS treatment services, and civil rights, social advocacy and political campaigns. According to a group that advises grantmakers, New York-based Funders for Lesbian and Gay Issues, grants made to gay organizations nationwide have more than doubled from under $30 million in 2002 to $65.5 million in 2006.

  Here and Abroad, Interest Piqued in Homes for Gay Seniors
By Kilian Melloy, EdgeBoston Contributor, Monday Mar 17, 2008
..For gays and lesbians, as much as for the rest of the demographic identities within the boomer cohort, the changes ahead promise better things than what came before, or what we see now. Already, GLBT seniors have begun to receive some measure of attention. Senior living facilities, like other institutions, still struggle with the presence of homophobia and discrimination..