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Some FAQs are answered elsewhere on this site: the Out List can help you locate mentors, Information and Training can fill you in on LGBT health issues, the listserv can connect you to the UCSF LGBT community, and campus LGBT resources are many. But here are some other popular FAQs.
How do I enroll my same-sex spouse or domestic partner for UC health and retirement benefits?
I'm new in town. How can I connect with the fabled LGBT communities of the Bay Area?
How can I find an LGBT-friendly health care provider?
What transgender resources does UCSF offer?
How do I enroll my same-sex spouse or domestic partner for UC health and retirement benefits?
If you have a same-sex spouse, you can enroll them just like an opposite-sex spouse, with one exception: you need to tell your benefits representative that you have a same-sex (not an opposite-sex) spouse so that UC handles your tax withholding correctly. Because the federal government does not recognize same-sex marriage, you have to pay federal tax on the benefits you provide your same-sex spouse. But you do not have to pay California tax on the benefits for your spouse—so be sure your rep knows your situation.
If you are in a California registered domestic partnership (or have a similar registration in another jurisdiction), you can enroll your partner for UC health and welfare benefits (as distinct from UC retirement benefits) simply by checking the appropriate box on the health enrollment form. And be sure to tell your benefits rep if you have a California-registered partnership, so UC handles your tax withholding correctly: you have to pay federal tax on the benefits you provide, but not California tax. To enroll your registered partner for retirement benefits, also, you should take an additional action: you should mail the UC Office of the President a copy of your California partnership registration. UC's excellent booklet on domestic partnership benefits provides the mailing address and a wealth of other useful info.
If you are in a non-registered same-sex domestic partnership, you can enroll your partner for UC health and welfare benefits (as distinct from UC retirement benefits) simply by checking the appropriate box on the health enrollment form. Note that you also have to agree to provide, if asked, certain proofs of domestic partnership listed in UC's excellent booklet on domestic partnership benefits. To enroll your partner for retirement benefits, too, you need to take an addtional action: you must mail the Office of the President a form known as UBEN 250 (Declaration of Domestic Partnership) and three supporting documents. The form, the mailing address, a list of acceptable supporting documents, and a wealth of other info is available in UC's domestic partnership booklet.
(Want to register your partnership with the State of California? Check out the California Secretary of State website.)
Still have questions? Contact UCSF Human Resources, your UCSF benefits representative, or the LGBT Center.
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I'm new in town. How can I connect with the fabled LGBT communities of the Bay Area?
Some time-tested tips:
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Pore over the Bay Area Reporter and Bay Times, the most comprehensive local LGBT papers. Their print versions have more info than their websites, and are available free all over the city, but especially in racks, stores, and cafes on Castro and Market Streets. Both papers have big calendars and classified sections, and Bay Times always features a huge 'n' helpful resource guide.
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SF's LGBT community center, on Market Street at Octavia, near the Castro, is a great resource! And if you're elsewhere in the Bay Area, visit one of these regional LGBT centers:
Pacific Center (Berkeley)
Rainbow Community Center (Contra Costa County)
Spectrum Center (Marin County)
Billy DeFrank Lesbian & Gay Community Center (San Jose)
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There are plentiful online guides to LGBT life in the Bay Area. To mention just two: Queer Things to Do In the SF Bay Area and the sfgate.com Gay & Lesbian eGuide.
- As you can imagine, San Francisco has groups to match just about every LGBT interest. It would be impossible to list them all here—but don't hesitate to contact the LGBT Center about your particular need. For example, SF has one of the few anti-LGBT violence resources in the nation (CUAV), an LGBT youth organization (LYRIC), a strong chapter of Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays (PFLAG), the headquarters of COLAGE (Children of Lesbians & Gays Everywhere), an LGBT parenting group (Our Family Coalition), an LGBT foundation (Horizons), a large LGBT center in the main public library (Hormel Center), an LGBT martial arts association (Triangle), a GLBT Historical Society, and several senior resources, including Open House and Lavender Seniors. San Francisco is also home to the statewide LGBT rights group Equality California and the National Center for Lesbian Rights.
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How can I find an LGBT or LGBT-friendly physician, therapist, or dentist?
In addition to asking friends and co-workers, checking the UCSF faculty on the Out List, posting a query on the UCSF LGBT listserv, or asking the LGBT Center for a referral, you can get online referrals from the Gay & Lesbian Medical Association, Bay Area Physicians for Human Rights, or Gaylesta (the Bay Area GLBT Psychotherapists Association). Also, the community-based non-profit organization New Leaf provides counseling services to LGBT people on a sliding-scale basis. And don't overlook the display ads in the Bay Area Reporter and Bay Times, available free at multiple locations.
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What transgender resources does UCSF offer?
The transgender communities of San Francisco are large,
diverse, visible, and active—so it's not surprising that the UCSF campus
community includes transgender employees and students, and that UCSF does ground-breaking
research and provides innovative support in the transgender realm.
The University of California system was one of the first institutions in the U.S. to ban discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Furthermore, the UC system was one of the first employers in the country to provide transgender health coverage for employees. (For details on the coverage and how to access it, contact the LGBT Center or UCSF Health Care Facilitator Sue Forstat.) In addition, UCSF and three other UC campuses provide transgender health coverage for students. (For details about this coverage and how to access it, contact the LGBT Center or Adele Anfinson of Student Health Services.)
UCSF is also viewed as a national leader in transgender health. The UCSF Center of Excellence in Transgender Health is headed by noted transgender advocate JoAnne Keatley, MSW, who also heads the Transgender Issues Subcommittee of the UCSF Chancellor's GLBT Committee (see details below). UCSF also houses the Transitions Project of the UCSF Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, a CDC-funded capacity-building project that
is the first of its kind to address the HIV prevention needs of transgender
communities. UCSF's HIV InSite offers a variety of trans health links, and TRANS:THRIVE, a unique SF drop-in center by and for the trans community, got its start at UCSF. UCSF medical students will soon have available an Independent Learning Module in trans health to accompany their core instruction in LGBT health; contact the LGBT Center for details. The Center can also arrange presentations on a wide range of transgender health issues, customized to audience needs and interests.
The LGBT Center and the Transgender Issues Subcommittee of the UCSF Chancellor's GLBT Advisory Committee have developed a wealth of resources for transgender employees and students, including information about the UC health benefit, provider referrals, networking with other trans UCSFers, advising about workplace/classroom challenges, info about gender-neutral facilities, and much more. Please don't hesitate to contact the LGBT Center or Subcommittee Chair JoAnne Keatley, who is an out trans community member.
The LGBT Center is always happy to provide training in transgender workplace/classroom issues; contact the Center to arrange a customized presentation, or to consult about a particular concern. The Center also presents a variety of public events annually to educate the campus community (and general public) about trans needs and concerns—visit Events for details.
Trans-knowledgeable health care is available at several San Francisco locations, including:
Lyon-Martin Health Services
Tom Waddell Clinic
St. James Infirmary (for sex workers)
Dimensions Clinic (for youth 12-25)
New Leaf (for sliding-scale psychotherapy)
For general transgender health information, check the LGBT health links page.
Information about trans legal issues (including ID change) is available from SF's Transgender Law Center; HRC provides in-depth info about trans workplace issues, while the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force offers a guide to making organizations trans-inclusive. Other national organizations include:
International Foundation for Gender Education
National Center for Transgender Equality
Trans-Academics.org
Transgender Law & Policy Institute
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