The rule implements a section of the Affordable Care Act that prohibits discrimination based on sex in federally-funded health care programs.
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The ACA is already making a difference in ensuring that LGBT Americans have access to quality, affordable coverage.
The Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights is now accepting complaints of sex discrimination from LGBT individuals.
Only a day after the federal Department of Education announced that Title IX protects transgender students, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced Friday that health providers must provide transgender people with transition-affirmative health care. These regulations codify existing informal guidance from HHS interpreting this provision to include protections from discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sex stereotyping.
It doesn’t mean insurers have to cover all treatments associated with gender transitioning but they just can’t outright deny them either.
“The ACA is created to ensure access and inclusion in the health care system for all Americans”, Sepper said.
“Today’s announcement is a key step toward realizing equity within our health care system and reaffirms this Administration’s commitment to giving every American access to the health care they deserve”, said Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell, in a statement.
The rules will take effect in 60 days and apply to any health care provider or health insurance company that receives federal funds, and to state Medicaid agencies and the Obamacare health insurance exchange marketplaces. These rules will dramatically improve the public health landscape for LGBT populations that suffer persistent health disparities due to pervasive bias and discrimination in health care settings and insurance coverage.
“The rules also recognize that discrimination based on sex stereotypes or the sex of someone’s partner or spouse is unlawful sex discrimination. But HHS should go further and make clear that sexual orientation discrimination is also impermissible under the Affordable Care Act”.
The Obama administration has finalized a new rule that bans discrimination against transgender people and all discrimination on the basis of sex within health programs that receive federal funding. The rule suggests that legal trends on that issue may cover gay, lesbian, and bisexual patients.
The rule allows for people who are gay, lesbian or transgender to file civil rights complaints if they believe that they have been treated unfairly by medical providers or insurers, though it doesn’t specify whether not covering specific treatments or procedures would qualify as discrimination.
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“Access to healthcare should never be denied because of your sexual orientation or gender identity”, says Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, in a press release.
