July 5, 2019
When transgender people seek healthcare, they face misunderstandings, harassment from staff, and other potential obstacles. In the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey of the NCTE (National Center for Transgender Equality), 1 in 4 trans people in the USA reported avoiding medical care, and 1 in 3 reported experiencing healthcare discrimination. Policies like the Title X domestic “gag rule” and the “moral conscience” rule by the U.S. Department of Health and Human services reinforce limited access to care and general discrimination.
This past Monday, the American College of Physicians produced its first guidelines for trans care and best practice; however, there is still a lot of progress to be made. “The fact that I am a trans man and I’m a Black trans man, doesn’t take away from the fact that I still have a uterus”, said Morgan Givens from Washington DC to Rewire.News. “I still have ovaries. I still have all these parts of my body that need to be maintained and cared for. If you are already ignored and now people are giving permission to deny you access to reproductive health care, how does it get better from there?”
Source: For Trans Men Seeking Reproductive Health Care, ‘There Are Barriers Every Step of the Way’, Tris Mamone, Rewire.News, 3 July 2019
Read more about the right to health of transgender people in our Topics section