The American Medical Association has voted to oppose the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, and declared that gay marriage bans contribute to health disparities.
The nation’s largest doctors’ group stopped short of saying it would seek to overturn marriage bans, but its new stance angered conservative activists and provides a fresh boost to lobbying efforts by gay-rights advocates.
The health disparities policy is based on evidence showing that married couples are more likely to have health insurance, and that the uninsured have a high risk for “living sicker and dying younger,” said Dr. Peter Carmel, an AMA board member.
Same-sex families lack other benefits afforded married couples, including tax breaks, spouse benefits under retirement plans and Social Security survivor benefits â┚¬â€ all of which can put their health at risk, according to an AMA council report presented at the meeting.
But Jenny Tyree, a marriage analyst for Focus on the Family Action, a conservative advocacy group, called it a health insurance problem, not a marriage problem. “We all know there are problems with health care so let’s solve the problem of the uninsured, rather than messing with marriage,” she said.
Doctors who pushed the group to oppose “don’t ask, don’t tell” say the policy forcing gay service members to keep their sexual orientation secret has “a chilling effect” on open communication between gays and their doctors.
“A law which makes people lie to their physicians is a bad law,” said Dr. David Fassler, a University of Vermont psychiatry professor who attended the meeting.
