Same-sex marriage may be destroying “traditional” marriage according to groups like the National Organization for Marriage, but the American Journal of Public Health found that gay marriage is good for your health.
A study was conducted in Massachusetts at a clinic that specializes in serving the health needs of gay men after same-sex marriage was legalized, CBS reported. It found that over that first 12-month period, visits to the clinic dropped 13 percent and healthcare costs decreased by 14 percent.
The journal said that the LGBT community received “compromised health care delivery” compared with the general population and suffered from “minority stress” leading to “negative mental and physical health effects.”
From their abstract:
Reports in the medical and social science literature suggest that legal and social recognition of same-sex marriage has had positive effects on the health status of this at-risk community.
Improved outcomes are to be expected because of the improved access to health care conferred by marriage benefits under federal or state law and as a result of attenuating the effects of institutionalized stigma on a sexual minority group.
So allowing same-sex couples brings down healthcare costs for everyone and helps people live longer. Those standing in the way of allowing same-sex couples to marry aren’t just denying gays and lesbians equal rights, they’re killing us.
My husband and I recently discovered how relatively easy it is to get married in New York. After doing our online application, once we got to the City Clerk office, we were married within three hours, including time to go across the street to get a judicial waiver for the 24 hour waiting period. EVERYONE was very helpful and they obviously think it’s really cool that people come from all over the country to get married there. The Officiant in the City Clerk Office was very professional.
Congratulations, Stan and live a longer and happy life together.