03.06 / 16:55
lgbtq
Florida
Transgender
Florida Medicaid regulator sides against including gender-affirming care
Arek Sarkissian 06/03/2022 08:58 AM EDT Link CopiedTALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida’s Medicaid regulator has determined that taxpayer-subsidized health coverage should not include transition-related medical care for the treatment of gender dysphoria, or the feeling of discomfort or distress some transgender people experience when their bodies don’t align with their gender.What happened: Tom Wallace, the deputy secretary for Medicaid at the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, submitted a report on Thursday that claims there was no evidence showing that gender-affirming care is a safe and effective way to treat gender dysphoria.“Rather, the available evidence demonstrates that these treatments cause irreversible physical changes and side effects that can affect long-term health,” the AHCA report states.Medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, support gender-affirming care for adults and adolescents.But medical experts said gender-affirming care for children rarely, if ever, includes surgery.