PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A U.S. military veteran and his daughter filed suit Monday against a federal rule that they say denies the daughter access to medical coverage because she is transgender.
The veteran and daughter anonymously filed their lawsuit against the government through GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, a Boston-based advocacy group. According to the group’s lawsuit, doctors’ recommended treatments were denied to the daughter because of a federal statute dating back to 1976 that mandated the exclusion of gender reassignment surgery in Army medical coverage for military dependents.
The statute is an outdated rule based on outdated beliefs about transgender people, and getting it off the books would be important for many people seeking access to care, said Ben Klein, an attorney with GLAD.
“We can safely say that this is the first time that the statute has been challenged. It would affect a huge number of people,” Klein said. “A victory in this case would ensure that all military contingents who are transgender have access to the critical medical care they need, free from discrimination or exclusion.”
The defendants in the lawsuit include the United States Department of Defense and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. The plaintiffs, who live in Maine, filed their lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine in Portland.
Representatives from the US Department of Defense declined to comment on the lawsuit and transferred to the US Department of Justice, which would represent the agency in the case. Justice Department representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.
The lawsuit states that the veteran served 23 years in the Marine Corps and the Air Force. His daughter is a 21-year-old transgender woman who has been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and has undergone gender transition surgery to address the condition, the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit says the daughter, referred to only as Jane Doe, is entitled to health care through the Army’s TRICARE Health Plan, a program of the Department of Defense’s military health system. It says she “is and still is unable to receive coverage as a TRICARE beneficiary” for gender reassignment surgery due to the 1976 rule.
The lawsuit states that the daughter also incurred costs and sought alternative health insurance due to previous false denials of coverage by the defendants. Her request for coverage of treatments, including laser hair removal and electrolysis, was previously denied, the lawsuit says.
