ORLANDO, Fla. – 26Health is a nonprofit health care group based in Orlando that focuses on meeting the needs of women and allies within the LGBTQ community.
David and Robert Baker-Hargrove, husbands and partnering physicians, co-founded 26Health in 2011 after finding a lack of multidisciplinary health care systems in and around Orlando to meet the complete needs of the LGBTQ and ally communities.
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Adults and children—nonbinary, transgender, cisgender, sick or well—are all welcome at the wellness centers for comprehensive physical and mental health services, regardless of ability to pay, company officials said.
For this year’s National LGBT Health Awareness week, 26Health presses on one very big topic of mental health.
“We (26Health) implore you to speak OUT LOUD for mental health. As one of the most important aspects of LGBTQHealth, we aim to prioritize mind and body equally,” company officials said in a Facebook post.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) individuals, especially youth, experience higher rates of health disparities, according to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention.
These disparities may be driven, in part, by biases of medical providers encountered in health care settings and lack of training for staff may contribute to this.
26Health believes health care is a right, not a privilege, and provides affordable health care, mental health care, adoption services and pharmacy drug discounts.
The Baker-Hargroves continue to give back to the LGBTQ community. The 26Health staff attends wellness community and health fairs. The group also meets regularly with other LGBTQ healthcare providers who understand the 26Health mission, and coordinate partnerships with other LGBTQ focused community-based organizations.
For more information, please contact the patient care center at 321-800-2922 Ext. 1700 or visit their website or Facebook page.