For the first time California is surveying its older LGBTQ residents to find out what issues they are dealing with as they age. The response to it has already surpassed expectations.
The UCSF researchers conducting the survey, Annesa Flentje, Ph.D., and Carol Dawson-Rose, Ph.D., on behalf of the California Department of Aging noted on its introductory page they expected about 2,000 people to participate by the time it concludes on March 31. They had reached that amount a little over a month after the survey went live online in early January.
As of February 14, the number of people surveyed had surpassed 2,640.
"We had an inkling there would be great interest in this because it really hasn't been done," said Susan DeMarois, a straight ally who is director of the state agency. "We are so happy there is this response. It really shows there is a need for this survey on this population statewide."
There is no cap to how many people can take the survey before it concludes next month.
"There is no baseline for data on this population, so the survey will be all the more richer from having more people who participate. There is no limit," said DeMarois, 58, who was appointed director of her agency on November 1, 2021. "Absolutely, this is the first time our department has done this."
The state agency budgeted $899,304 toward the survey and expects to begin reporting out its findings later this year. Respondents are asked about myriad concerns, from their health issues and insurance coverage to living arrangements, social activities, and relationships.
The questions also inquire about such varied topics as HIV status and transportation to employment and end-of-life matters. Anyone age 50 and older who identifies under the LGBTQIA+ acronym and lives in California can fill out the survey, which should take about 20 minutes to complete.
The age range is purposefully broad, noted DeMarois, due to the agency wanting to gather information from people at different stages of their older adult lives, whether in their 50s approaching retirement age or well into their golden years.
"We are sort of straddling meeting current needs and projecting future needs. It is a wide age swath," she said. "Part of it is we want to know what you and your husband might need down the road. At the same time we really want to hear from people in their 70s and 80s today."
The agency is also striving to reach a geographically diverse set of respondents to the survey. In addition to partnering with LGBTQ senior service providers in urban centers, such as San Francisco-based Openhouse, it is also working with its network of 33 Area Agencies on Aging to spread the word about the survey.
"We have come at it from lots of angles so people hear about it through whatever channels they rely on," said DeMarois. "We also hope people in their 40s and 50s share this information about the survey with someone in their 60s, 70s, or 80s."
In his last email as the LGBT+ senior program manager for the Spahr Center in Marin County, Bill Blackburn encouraged people to take the survey.
"If you live in California, are over 50-yo (ahem) and identify as LGBTQI or A, I encourage you to participate," wrote Blackburn, who was laid off in early February as the nonprofit service provider is facing a financial crisis. "Completely confidential, with no way of tracking you, the survey aims to shed light on our unique challenges, hopes and contributions. Your engagement will directly improve resources, services and policies available to us."
Identifying gaps
The intent of the survey is to identify gaps in the needs of the state's LGBTQ older population and highlight priorities for both the state aging department and lawmakers in Sacramento. It also ties into the state's Master Plan for Aging, a 10-year blueprint mapping out numerous initiatives and steps policymakers can take to assist people as they age in the Golden State.
It is used as a basis for what goals the aging department sets during each two-year session in the Legislature. The plan does take into account the needs of the LGBTQ community, and the survey findings will further bolster the initiatives the state agency undertakes in the years to come.
"I fully expect something notable relative to the LGBTQ community as a result of this survey we will focus on in the next two years," said DeMarois, who noted she and her staff met with the 12-member Legislative LGBTQ Caucus to apprise them about the survey. "We briefed the LGBTQ caucus, which is larger than it has ever been in the history of the state. They are very interested in this and very interested in legislation that includes the older adult population."
Because the U.S. census doesn't ask about people's sexual orientation or gender identity (SOGI) on the forms used for the decennial count of the country's population, there is no exact picture of how many Californians over the age of 50 are LGBTQ.
UCLA School of Law think tank the Williams Institute released a report last year estimating the number of LGBTQ adults age 18 and older living in California was 1,459,600. Throughout the U.S. it estimated the LGBTQ adult population to be a little more than 13.9 million, with people age 50 and older accounting for 4.5%.
"I don't know what the population of LGBTQ seniors is in California," acknowledged DeMarois, who added that her agency does ask about SOGI on various forms it uses, though answering the questions is voluntary. "We are interested in collecting more accurate data."
One of the first government entities to survey LGBTQ older adults was San Francisco, which released its report in 2014, as the Bay Area Reporter previously reported. Santa Clara County released the findings of its own survey in 2021.
The state of Oregon published the findings of a survey on its LGBTQ senior population in 2021. California's survey was initially to be rolled out last year, but it got pushed back to 2024 due to a desire to translate it into multiple languages.
It is offered in English, Spanish, Tagalog, and Chinese. In producing the survey, the state's aging department partnered with Openhouse and UCSF's Sexual and Gender Minority Health Equity Lab. Also assisting on it were two centers based at UC Berkeley, the Center for the Advanced Study of Aging Services and the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society.
"We are really hungry to learn more and put it into action," said DeMarois. "We hope as early as this summer to share some of the preliminary findings."
Survey participants will be eligible to win one of 40 $25 gift cards chosen by random drawing. The winners are to be notified by June 1.
To access the survey online, visit aging.ca.gov/Survey_of_LGBTQIA/.
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