A group of protesters gathered on the Capitol steps at the top of Madison’s State Street to demand local elected officials back up their words with action when it comes to protecting transgender rights.
MADISON (WKOW) — A group of protesters gathered on the Capitol steps at the top of Madison’s State Street to demand local elected officials back up their words with action when it comes to protecting transgender rights.
Many of the signs, speeches, and vibes of the event were directed pointedly at SSM Health, a healthcare provider that recently suspended gender affirming care, drawing criticism from the Dane County Board of Supervisors.
“I had my top surgery done at the SSM Aesthetic Center,” said Logan Bitz, a participant and organizer of the demonstration. “I know firsthand, that was something that they (SSM Health) were offering. That was something I had to work for years to get there.”
When SSM Health stopped offering gender affirming care, he knew that other people like him would now have one less viable option to get the healthcare they need.
Bitz is one of the founding members of the Trans Resistance Action Committee, a group founded last month to push for trans rights.
The group protested on the steps of the state Capitol Saturday morning amid the bustle of the Dane County Farmers Market.
“No one should ever have to worry about the religious ideologies of their health care professionals for the healthcare organization interfering with their care,” Cae Dallman, another TRAC member, said.
Despite the ire for SSM Health, TRAC members want action from Dane County elected officials.
In June, the County Board approved a resolution to make Dane County a “sanctuary” for transgender and nonbinary people. The resolution directs the Dane County Sheriff’s Office to make enforcement of any state laws of criminalizing gender affirming care its lowest priority.
The resolution is currently symbolic as Wisconsin has no such laws.
But with SSM Health’s decision to end gender affirming care, TRAC wants the county board to back up the spirit of the resolution with real action.
“Transgender people of Dane County deserve better than pouring their money into the pockets of SSM Health after they made this decision, which is blatantly anti-trans,” Bitz said.
Dean Health Plan provides coverage to some Dane County employees. SSM Health maintains a minority ownership of Dean Health Plan, after selling a 55 percent stake in the insurance company to Minnesota based Medica in 2021.
TRAC sees Dane County’s ongoing payments to Dean Health Plan as public money that is indirectly supporting SSM Health.
“Which we see as a blatant attack on not only the Dane County workers but also the trans community as a whole,” Dallman said.
“Dean Health Plan by Medica’s contracted policies and coverage related to gender affirming care have not changed,” Dean Health Plan Spokesperson Scott Culver said in an email to 27 News. “Plan members continue to have covered access to gender affirming surgeries and care through our contracted providers, hospitals and health systems.”
Culver emphasized in a call with 27 News that Dean’s coverage has not changed despite its connection to SSM Health.
“SSM Health welcomes and respects all people who come to us for care, including our transgender patients,” SSM Health Spokesperson Lisa Adams said in a written statement. “We remain committed to honoring the diverse individual needs of every person we work with and serve – and have a more than 150-year history of providing high-quality, compassionate care to all.”
The healthcare system did not directly address its decision to end gender affirming care.
TRAC members said that they have begun to reach out to Dane County elected officials and a union representing Dane County employees to elicit support for their effort.
Source link
credite