USPATH Statement on Rule 1557 of the Affordable Care Act

June 17, 2020

As leaders in the field of transgender health, USPATH condemns the current administration’s removal of healthcare protections for transgender and nonbinary (TGNB) people from Rule 1557 of the Affordable Care Act. 

This action allows healthcare providers, hospitals, and health insurers to deny care and resources to TGNB people. As a result, when a transgender or nonbinary person visits the emergency room, they may be turned away and denied care from emergency services.

This latest effort is but one example of an ongoing series of assaults on the health and civil rights of transgender people. Issued on the fourth anniversary of the Pulse dance club massacre in Orlando, during Pride Month, and amid the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, this announcement brazenly attacks the TGNB community at a time when it is already in distress.

We strongly urge our colleagues in healthcare, including administrators in public health, medical centers, medical and nursing schools, and health insurers across the country to stand in solidarity with our members to create institutional policies and protections for TGNB people. Resisting the erosion of these protections shows commitment to continue to provide and cover critical, medically necessary, TGNB affirming healthcare to a vulnerable community, and to ensure that the current administration is held accountable for its discriminatory actions.

Click here to download the statement.