California LGBT Patient Rights Attorney
We help put the 'fair' back in 'fair fight.'
California is ahead of most states when it comes to protecting the civil rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people. However, gaps continue to exist in the statutes that give LGBT patients rights to equal services and equal treatment in healthcare facilities.
If you were denied a certain medical treatment because you are gay, lesbian or transgender, if you were denied medical leave for a sex change, if you were treated in a discriminatory way in a hospital, nursing home or care facility, you may have a legal claim. Contact the California LGBT patient rights lawyers at The Dolan Law Firm.
San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Healthcare and Insurance Attorney
LGBT patient rights attorney Christopher Dolan has been protecting the rights of California citizens for almost 20 years. He has fought — and won — numerous civil rights cases for LGBT clients, securing significant financial settlements and verdicts.
Mr. Dolan has been chosen as a "Northern California Super Lawyer" for five consecutive years. He was selected as the California Consumer Attorney of the Year. He holds an AV-Preeminent in the Martindale-Hubbell peer-review rating process for "highest legal ability" and ethical standards.* He has the experience, the ability, and the drive to succeed when patients' civil rights have been violated.
Legal Protections for LGBT Patients and Families
- LGBT families have the same rights as straight married couples when a loved one is in the hospital. A couple with a registered domestic partnership and a lesbian or gay adoptive parent should be accorded the same visitation rights and healthcare decision-making rights as heterosexual couples and biological parents.
- LGBT families have the same rights to medical leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and California Family Rights Act as other employees.
- The Unruh Act and Ralph Civil Rights Act protect LGBT patients' rights to be free from discrimination in hospitals and nursing homes — including healthcare companies operated by religious institutions. LGBT couples should not be separated in nursing homes, unless it is for medical care reasons. (In a recent California case, the court rejected an argument that a doctor and hospital did not need to follow California anti-discrimination laws in providing infertility treatment for religious reasons. Lesbian patients are to be treated the same as all other patients.)
- With passage of the Insurance Gender Non-Discrimination Bill, it is illegal to discriminate against transgender and transsexual patients when they seek gender-related health care or wish to buy insurance.
- All patients have privacy rights, which are protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA). This Act prevents exposure of one's HIV/AIDS status, among other medical conditions.
Contact a San Francisco LGBT Healthcare and Insurance Attorney
If you are gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, or you belong to an LGBT family and you believe your rights have been violated, contact a healthcare rights lawyer at The Dolan Law Firm. We work on a contingency-fee basis, meaning that you pay no fees or costs up-front. If we obtain a recovery on your behalf, we receive a percentage of any recovery we obtain for you. No recovery, no fee.
*"AV® Preeminent ™ and BV® Distinguished™ are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies." Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell Ratings fall into two categories — legal ability and general ethical standards.