Gregory Wayne Abbott (born November 13, 1957) is an American attorney who has served as the 48th governor of Texas since January 20, 2015. A member of the Republican Party, Abbott previously served as the 50th attorney general of Texas from 2002 to 2015. He is the third governor of any U.S. state to permanently use a wheelchair. He is also the first disabled governor in Texas history.
Hawaii passes legislation that requires insurance companies to cover gender-affirming care
Hawaii passed a bill that requires insurance companies to cover gender-affirming care. On 8 March, the state’s House of Representatives passed the HB 2405 bill by a nearly unanimous vote.
Under the legislation, health insurance companies would be barred from denying coverage of procedures that would currently be deemed “cosmetic” for trans individuals. “The legislature finds that many transgender persons have experienced discriminatory treatment from health insurance providers when seeing coverage for gender-affirming treatments,” the bill said.
The bill is now headed to Hawaii’s Senate for further deliberation. If the bill progresses, procedures like facial surgeries, hair removal, mastectomies, hysterectomies, breast augmentations and vocal surgeries would be covered by medical insurers.
Shortly after the bill passed, LGBTQ+ activists took to social media to praise the impactful legislation. One user wrote: “This is a wonderful bill that will do a ton of good for trans people in Hawaii.” Another user tweeted: “We need less state legislatures like Texas and Florida and more like Hawaii.
