suicidal- a dangerous statistic in a population that already has
an attempted suicide rate of 41% (Jackson, 2015). This
discrimination by insurance companies negatively affects
many of these individuals mentally, physically, and
emotionally.
How are insurance companies able to take advantage of the
transgender community? Currently, there are not adequate
laws in place protecting the transgender community from
discrimination in the healthcare setting. In 2010, the
Affordable Care Act was introduced, which includes the
condition that people cannot be denied coverage based on their
gender or health history (National Center for Transgender
Equality, 2014b). Although this seemed like a positive
development for the transgender community, this requirement
lacks clarity. When signing up for a plan, individuals must
check “a single gender box,” either male or female. Certain
procedures are only covered for certain genders; therefore, if a
man who is transitioning to a woman registers as female, he
will no longer be covered for a prostate exam. This leads many
transgender individuals to either have no insurance or register
as their assigned gender at birth. Eli Strong, a transgender
male, shared his frustrations with having to identify as female