Man Sues Clinic After Homosexuality Labeled 'Chronic' Problem

Matthew Moore wasn't pleased to find his status as a gay man described as a "chronic condition" on his medical records after a routine checkup in 2013. But even more offensive to the LA man is the fact that the health organization he's now suing didn't keep its promise to scrub the designation from his files, reports NBC Los Angeles. The 46-year-old is suing the doctor and the health care network, not only for the "defamatory" classification, but also for the "pattern of deceit and medical record doctoring."

Even though the 302.0 "homosexual behavior" code was wiped from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders in 1973, Moore said his doctor defended the designation in his records last year by explaining that the "medical community goes 'back and forth'" on the issue. Moore complained to the Torrance Memorial Health Association and received an apology and a promise that his record would be corrected. But when he checked again in May 2014, his "homosexual behavior" was still listed, though now as a "chronic problem" instead of a "chronic condition," reports the Washington Post. In a statement, the medical network blames its "highly complex software" for the problem. Even so, Moore says he will proceed with the suit. (In Maryland, a white man recently won $350,000 in a racial bias lawsuit.)