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Pennsylvania House of Representatives
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20150&cosponId=15972
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House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: December 17, 2014 09:59 AM
From: Representative Mark B. Cohen
To: All House members
Subject: Transgender Health Benefits Act
 
In January, I plan to introduce legislation to expand healthcare coverage for transgendered individuals.

In 2013, Philadelphia passed an ordinance codifying transition related healthcare, and in 2014, Medicare, a bellwether of national healthcare trends, removed exclusions on transgender care.

Despite this progress, this care has been elusive at the state level. There is no coverage for state employees, no protections in private insurance, and there are specific exclusions the state Medicaid program.

This bill would require coverage of transition related care, including hormone therapy, mental health, and surgery in all private, public, and Medicaid plans, the latter being critical to a group experiencing a high poverty rate.

Currently, only four states, plus the District of Columbia, have full transgender health coverage, and this legislation would insure that all healthcare plans in Pennsylvania recognize that transition related healthcare is necessary care.

Please join me in sponsoring this legislation.

If you have any questions, please contact Kim Hileman of my office at 7-4117 or khileman@pahouse.net.

Thank you.




Introduced as HB304