AARP Aging Groups Endorse Gay Seniors Report

Aging groups including the AARP and the American Society on Aging have endorsed a report on the challenges facing gay seniors prepared by Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders (SAGE), to be released Wednesday afternoon.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the report marks the first time the major American aging organizations are supporting an examination into the needs of LGBT older adults, estimated to be as high as 3 million.

"The report, to be released in Chicago at a national meeting on aging, highlights three key areas where LGBT seniors face challenges: financial security, health care and social supports," reports the Tribune. "It calls on federal and state lawmakers to consider ways to legally recognize same-sex relationships so aging partners in a committed relationship can have access to the same supports that benefit heterosexual seniors. That would include the right to Social Security survivor benefits and the rights of same-sex partners to make medical decisions for each other."