Retiring in Florida as an LGBTQIA+ Older Adult

EPIC, Empath Partners in Care, provides HIV prevention, testing, treatment and support across six locations in the Tampa Bay area. It is part of Empath Health, and it serves a population that includes a large number of people who have been living with HIV for decades and are now aging with it. Services include free HIV testing and home test kits, an HIV medical home, medical case management, counseling, PrEP and TelePrEP, pharmacy services, housing assistance, food pantries and meals, support groups and financial assistance. A separate program, TOPWA, supports pregnant people living with HIV. That combination matters for older adults specifically. Long-term survivors often need case management, housing help and food support at the same time as medical care, and having them in one organization removes a lot of the coordination burden that otherwise falls on the person themselves. Phone numbers differ by county: Pinellas is (727) 328-3260 and Hillsborough is (813) 237-3066. Costs are not published in full, and financial assistance is available.

TransNetwork is a Tampa Bay community organization dedicated to uplifting and empowering transgender and gender-expansive people through advocacy, education and celebration. Its work includes the Trans March, Transtastic events, Support Space gatherings, community discussions, advocacy, a health fund run in partnership with Bell Pharmacy, and online support platforms. Nothing on the site is aimed specifically at older adults. It is listed here because trans elders are among the most isolated groups in aging, and because a health fund and a standing support space are practically useful at any age. If you are looking for elder-specific support, contact the organization and ask what exists. Services are free and the organization accepts donations. There is no published phone number or street address, so contact is by email.

The Residences at Equality Park offers long-term leases to LGBTQIA+ older adults on the campus of the Pride Center at Equality Park in Wilton Manors, Florida. The advantage of the arrangement is location. Residents live on the grounds of an established LGBTQ+ community center rather than traveling to one, which is the same pattern that makes Pride Place in Seattle and Bay Shore Senior Residences on Long Island work. The Pride Center publishes very little detail about the Residences themselves. Apartment count, age and income requirements, rents, amenities and waitlist status are all unpublished, so contact the center directly before making plans around it.