Gay men who live in in places where same-sex marriage is legal are healthier, have less stress, make fewer doctor visits and have lower health-care costs, a study has found. The twelve months after the 2003 legalisation of same-sex marriage in Massachusetts, USA, saw a significant decrease in medical care visits, mental health visits and mental health-care costs among gay and bisexual men, compared to the twelve months before the law changed. This led to a thirteen percent reduction in health-care visits and a fourteen percent reduction in health-care costs, according to Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. The health benefits were similar for single gay men and those with partners. Previous research has shown that not having the legal right to marry can have a stressful effect on gays, lesbians and bisexuals.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Monday, 17th December 2012 - 12:10am