Highlights: - Since 2017, all Virginia health care plans sold under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) have complied with regulations to remove exclusions on providing transition-related care, however many Virginians have still experienced denials or delays in care due to insurance coding issues related to their gender marker and outdated prior authorization forms. In 2019, Delegate Danica Roem joined with health insurance companies, transgender and non-binary community members, and health care providers in forming a work group to discuss these issues. She explained that the work group supported legislation to codify health insurance protections for transgender Virginians at the state level to address the lingering perception of discrimination.
- Katie Keith said with Virginia being first in the South and 23rd in the country, this legislation builds momentum for ensuring trans people’s access to health care. Since 2016, there’s been a dramatic drop in health plan policies excluding transition-related care and a sizable expansion of plans with affirmative language on covering treatments for gender dysphoria. Thanks to this law, Virginians will still be protected despite the proposed repeal of federal rules banning discrimination against trans people in health care.
- Brandon Robinson noted that about 22% of Virginians have health plans that are affected by this law, which include plans bought in the ACA marketplace, small group plans, and most plans for companies with under 200 employees. Since 2017, all these health plans have covered hormone replacement therapy and gender confirming surgeries per WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) standards. Moving forward, there needs to be ongoing conversations, including education for providers on using codes that end delays for care.
- Afton Bradley highlighted that this legislation is just a first step in ensuring transgender people’s equitable access to healthcare. The healthcare system was not made to serve transgender people and it will take time to rebuild it to serve the community’s needs. Part of that work is educating trans people about their health insurance and equipping providers and health insurers with the information they need to serve the community adequately.
- Melissa-Irene Jackson explained that the Virginia League for Planned Parenthood (VLPP) works closely with marginalized communities to provide critical services like reproductive and transgender health care that are frequently under attack, making it crucial to advocate so their patients have no barriers to care. This legislation helps usher in a cultural shift of understanding the need for transition-related healthcare.
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Make sure you join us on Tuesday, May 19, from 12:00-1:00pm, for the final session of our Legislative Lunch & Learn series. We’re wrapping up the series by celebrating the legislators, organizations, and advocates who have worked for years to pass laws that protect LGBTQ people in their daily lives, like the Virginia Values Act and House Bill 1049. We have a robust panel lined up, including: Senator Adam Ebbin, Delegate Mark Sickles, Delegate Mark Levine, and staff with Equality Virginia and the Virginia Values Coalition. We look forward to seeing you on Zoom soon! In Solidarity,
All of us at Equality Virginia | |
