In a groundbreaking decision, a federal review board on Friday ruled
that transgender people are now eligible to receive Medicare coverage
for gender-reassignment surgeries.
The ruling by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Departmental Appeals Board amended a 33-year policy that required the
government health insurance program to automatically deny coverage for
such procedures. Under the new guidelines, gender-reassignment surgeries
will be treated as an ordinary medical procedure and applications for
coverage will be decided on a case-by-case basis.
The board’s decision was made in response to a lawsuit filed last
year by several national LGBT groups on behalf of Denee Mallon, 74, a
biological man who identifies as a woman.
As Stephanie Armour of the Wall Street Journal observes,
“Although the Department of Health and Human Services appeals-board decision involved a single case—a New Mexico woman who sought gender-reassignment surgery—it could have broad ramifications because private insurance companies and Medicaid, the state-federal program for the poor, often follow Medicare’s lead on coverage.” Continue at Timothy Kleiser
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