Ricardo Martinez is CEO of Equality Texas Over the last two years in Texas, in and outside of the Capitol, I’ve stood side by side with the parents of transgender children. I have witnessed the devotion and unconditional love they have for their children. At those events at the Capitol, when I allowed myself a…
Time runs out on Texas House bill banning gender confirmation health care for kids, but another attempt lives on in the Senate
House Bill 1399 would have banned gender confirmation surgery, hormone therapy and puberty suppression treatments for Texas’ transgender children. By Megan Munce, The Texas Tribune A controversial bill that would ban gender affirming health care for transgender children missed a key deadline Thursday for consideration in the Texas House. But a similar Senate bill still…
Reversing a Trump policy, the Biden White House is restoring transgender health protections
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said the policy change aligns with language in the Affordable Care Act. Gay and transgender people will be shielded from sex discrimination in health care, a top White House health official said Monday, reversing a controversial Trump-era policy. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra said language in…
Gender-affirming medical treatment for transgender kids would be considered child abuse under Texas Senate bill
Senate Bill 1646 is among several other bills that advocacy groups say erode the rights of transgender Texans. But it’s unclear what the legislation’s chances are in the House, where another major bill targeting transgender children appears to have stalled. By Megan Munce, The Texas Tribune “Gender-affirming medical treatment for transgender kids would be considered…
San Antonio Express-News editorial criticizes anti-LGBTQ smears in local political races
An editorial in the October 29 issue of the San Antonio Express-News points out anti-LGBTQ claims made in two local political races: The first for a seat on the NEISD school board, the other a race for a U.S. House seat. In the editorial, the newspaper writes, “Let’s be clear: Homophobia has no place in…
Texas LGBTs Reminded of Affordable Care Act’s December 15 Enrollment Deadline
Equality Texas is spreading the word to the LGBT community that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is still the law of the land and consumers have until December 15 to sign up for health care coverage. In an email sent out on December 3, Equality Texas CEO Chuck Smith explains, “There are more insurers than…
New Program Seeks to Improve Health of Trans Texans
A collaborative effort initiated between the Texas Health Institute and the Equality Texas Foundation will work to improve the health of transgender, gender non-binary, and intersex Texans. The new program, the Texas Transgender Health Program, aims to address the fact that when compared to the general population, transgender people disproportionately lack affordable health services and…
The Trans Teacher: Brandon Beck Educates Texas
When his kindergarten teacher asked the students to line up by gender, Brandon L. Beck was confused. Did he belong in the line for boys or girls? He was assigned female at birth, but preferred acting like the boys, despite the ridicule. It was the late 1970s, and very little was known about being transgender.…
Metamorphoses: Medical Transition and Where Gatekeeping Is Headed
Like a large portion of transgender women, I have experienced immense difficulty accessing the proper care that I’ve required to medically transition. When I first came out publicly as a trans woman, one of my goals was to start hormone replacement therapy (HRT) as soon as possible, but I quickly learned that it isn’t as…