Amidst a heated debate over healthcare policy, GOP lawmakers have launched a bold move to repeal a controversial Biden administration rule mandating taxpayer-funded transgender surgeries.
Top Points
1. GOP lawmakers have introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to overturn the Biden Department of Health and Human Services' rule mandating taxpayer funding for transgender surgeries.
2. The resolution aims to repeal HHS's expanded definition of "sex discrimination" in health programs, which includes gender identity and sexual orientation.
3. Republican representatives argue that the Biden administration's ruling would force taxpayers to fund transgender healthcare against their beliefs and compel healthcare providers, including faith-based organizations, to offer such services.
GOP lawmakers have introduced a Congressional Review Act resolution to repeal a rule from the Biden Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that requires taxpayer funding for transgender surgeries.
Reps. Chip Roy of Texas and Doug LaMalfa of California are leading the effort to overturn HHS’s new definition of “sex discrimination” in health programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and private insurance.
“The Biden administration is distorting the definition of ‘sex’ to include gender identity and sexual orientation through radical executive action,” Roy said.
“Americans should not be compelled to fund transgender healthcare with their premiums and tax dollars, and healthcare providers should not be coerced into offering these services.”
The new Biden administration policy mandates that insurance cover gender transition procedures and potentially abortion services, overriding any state laws that ban these services. This ruling also compels faith-based organizations to provide transgender surgeries, the GOP lawmakers warn.
LaMalfa criticized the rule as a “baseless and unscientific reinterpretation of the definition of ‘sex,’” adding that it will be used to force individuals and organizations to pay for procedures that violate their beliefs.
The final rule comes at a time when other countries are reconsidering their support for gender-transition drugs and surgeries for minors. The Cass Review, a comprehensive four-year study into gender medicine in the U.K., released in early April, found “remarkably weak evidence” supporting such treatments.
Countries like Finland, Norway, and Sweden have restricted these treatments for those under 18, and as of April 1, the National Health Service in England banned puberty blockers for gender transitions.
In the U.S., more than 20 states have prohibited gender-identity drugs and surgeries for adolescents and teens, a position that contrasts sharply with the Biden administration’s support for what it calls “critical, medically necessary care for transgender youth.”
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