The U.S. Veteran Affairs Bureau building in Washington, DC.
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The Veterans Affairs Bureau on Friday protected gender-affirming healthcare provided to transgender veterans and reversed policies that caused confusion and fear in the community.
In an internal VA memo seen on NPR Friday, the VA said it is withdrawing directive 1341, which includes detailed guidance on the types of care that Transgender veterans can receive at VA facilities. The policy also directed healthcare providers to use pronouns that veterans prefer, and to use bathrooms and assign rooms according to their self-identified gender.
An internal memo said the withdrawal of the directive “will not affect existing clinical guidance,” and the VA “supports our commitment to providing care to all veterans.”
“It’s dishonest,” says Lindsay Church, executive director of American advocacy group Minority Veterans. “Transgender veterans now have to ask themselves: “Is it worth taking care of me in the VA? Is it safe to do so?” Discriminatory factors Should I face it to even go to the bathroom? ”
Supporters were prepared to retract the order.
Transgender people make up a small portion of the population, but research suggest That they are likely to serve the army.
VA research veterans who are sexual minorities, including LGBTQIA, non-binary, intersex, and other veterans. He is more likely to take his life than the average veteran. That number is higher for trans veterans. Veterans have a higher average suicide rate than the general population.
In an internal memo, the VA said “we will conduct a comprehensive care review regarding identifying veterans and undergo a rule-making process to modify any medical benefit packages that we believe are needed.”
The church said supporters of these veterans could mean a wholesale rollback on transgender health in the VA.
VA currently offers gender-based healthcare, including hormone therapy, prosthetic devices, and tools to support transgender veterans who exist as gender identity in choice.
The VA does not offer gender-affirming surgeries, but the withdrawn order stipulates that veterans can undergo surgery for other medical conditions that happen to affirm the gender, such as procedures that reduce the risk of cancer.
Even before the VA revoked directive 1341 on Friday, VA staff told NPR that they were receiving more calls from trans veterans worried about trusting their health care providers.
The trigger for White House Presidential Order It now says it is a US policy of “recognizing two genders, male and female.” The VA has removed references to groups of internal documents on several websites and healthcare systems.
The VA has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the new directive.
NPR’s Quil Lawrence contributed to this report
