De Vries comments on COVID pandemic and need for advanced care planning for LGBTQ adults

Dr. Brian de Vries, Professor Emeritus of Gerontology, discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need for better care planning for LGBTQ adults.  De Vries commented that "Among heterosexuals the kind of default and what is expected is that family would be there to provide support, care, and to step in whenever it is needed. That is much less true among LGBTQ people. LGBTQ people are most likely to engage our chosen family members, mostly our friends.” 

As did the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s, the COVID pandemic has once again illustrated for LGBTQ people the importance of planning for one's end-of-life care, said de Vries, who has dual U.S. and Canadian citizenship. For gay men in particular, he said, the latest health crisis was a "been here before" experience.  For further information, please read the full story.