On Wednesday, a federal judge struck down a Florida rule restricting Medicaid coverage for irreversible, experimental transgender treatments.
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle wrote in a 54-page ruling that “gender identity is real” and that the state’s rule violated several federal laws and (via the Associated Press):
He said a Florida health code rule and a new state law violated federal laws on Medicaid, equal protection and the Affordable Care Act’s prohibition of sex discrimination.
They are “invalid to the extent they categorically ban Medicaid payment for puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for the treatment of gender dysphoria,” Hinkle wrote.
The judge said Florida had chosen to block payment for some treatments “for political reasons” using a biased and unscientific process and that “pushing individuals away from their transgender identity is not a legitimate state interest.”
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Hinkle’s harsh language echoed that in his ruling two weeks ago over a law that bans transgender minors from receiving puberty blockers. Hinkle, who was appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton, issued a preliminary injunction so that three children could continue receiving treatment.
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The latest ruling involved a lawsuit filed last year on behalf of two adults and two minors, but advocacy groups estimate that some 9,000 transgender people in Florida use Medicaid to fund their treatments.
In February, at a joint meeting between the Florida Board of Medicine and the Florida Board of Osteopathic Medicine, the two groups decided against doing away with a rule against transgender care for children. And, the boards abolished an exception that would have allowed children to participate in studies conducted by universities to receive non-surgical treatment, which Townhall reported.
Earlier this month, Townhall covered how transgender people are crowdfunding to try to leave the state of Florida because of a slew of “anti-LGBTQ+” laws that have been passed in recent years.
Sage Chelf, a 30-year-old “trans woman,” told the outlet that the clinic that prescribed “her” hormone therapy was ending all treatments for patients who identify as transgender.
“I don’t want to go back to the person that I was forced to be at the time,” Chelf told the outlet. Chelf reportedly began to transition in 2021. “It was a very dark time in my life. I would rather just not be alive, I guess, then have to go back to living not trans.”
Sage Chelf, a trans woman, is moving out of Florida to Illinois soon because of a recent law in Florida that has restricted her access to gender affirming care. https://t.co/ssye0NDmmE
— WEAR ABC 3 (@weartv) June 2, 2023