The Mediating Role of Frailty in Healthcare Utilization Among Sexual and Gender Minorities: A Comparison of Generalist, Specialist, and Mental Health Visits

Chelsea N. Wong, Robert Cavanaugh, Louisa H. Smith, Dae H. Kim, Carl G. Streed, Farzana Kapadia, Brianne Olivieri-Mui, Division of Gerontology, Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Hinda and Arthur Marcus, Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Department of Health Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Roux Institute, Northeastern University, Section of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, GenderCare Center, Boston Medical Center, Department of Epidemiology, New York University School of Global Public Health, New York

Journal of Applied Gerontology

Published online on January 24, 2026

Abstract

Journal of Applied Gerontology, Ahead of Print.
This study examined whether frailty mediates the relationship between sexual and gender minority (SGM) status and three types of outpatient healthcare utilization among adults aged 50 and older in theAll of UsResearch Program (2017–2022). We estimated ...