California Boycotts Iowa for Refusing to Spend Taxpayer Money on Transgender Surgery
The state is the latest addition to a 2016 law, Assembly Bill 1887
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California Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) declared a complete ban on state-funded travel to Iowa due to a law prohibiting Medicaid from allowing taxpayer-funded gender reassignment surgeries, The Sacramento Bee reported.
The state is the latest addition to a 2016 law, Assembly Bill 1887, which bans state-sponsored travel to states that have passed laws perceived as noninclusive or discriminatory based on sexual orientation.
Other states include:
- Alabama
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- Oklahoma
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
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Below is from the website of the California Office of the Attorney General:
In AB 1887, the California Legislature determined that "California must take action to avoid supporting or financing discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people." (Gov. Code, § 11139.8, subd. (a)(5).) To that end, AB 1887 prohibits a state agency, department, board, or commission from requiring any state employees, officers, or members to travel to a state that, after June 26, 2015, has enacted a law that (1) has the effect of voiding or repealing existing state or local protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression; (2) authorizes or requires discrimination against same-sex couples or their families or on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression; or (3) creates an exemption to anti-discrimination laws in order to permit discrimination against same-sex couples or their families or on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. (Gov. Code, § 11139.8, subds. (b)(1), (2).) In addition, the law prohibits California from approving a request for state-funded or state-sponsored travel to such a state.
The Iowa Supreme Court ruled in March 2019 that gender transition surgeries must be covered under Medicaid, since the state's Civil Rights Act prohibited discrimination or refusal of service to people based on gender identity. So, the Iowa Legislature passed, and Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed, a bill that specifically excluded gender transition surgeries from Medicaid coverage.
Under new guidelines, expected to be introduced in all schools across England and Wales in October, #transgender students will be allowed to use the changing rooms and bathrooms of "their choice."
— Neon Nettle (@NeonNettle) September 16, 2019
READ MORE: https://t.co/OKZkkUE5jh
#UKSchools #schools
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According to Becerra' s statement:
"The Iowa Legislature has reversed course on what was settled law under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, repealing protections for those seeking gender-affirming healthcare."
"California has taken an unambiguous stand against discrimination and government actions that would enable it."
The Iowa ban will go into effect on Oct. 4.
The ban on travel is meant to stop public colleges and universities from participating in events in states on the no-travel list.
The ban is enforced on a discretionary basis, specifically when it t comes to college athletics programs, which continue to compete in banned states.
In some scenarios, College athletics may fall under one of the documented exceptions to this law, which include instances involving contractual obligations incurred before Jan. 1, 2017, tax collection, law enforcement matters, and litigation.
In March, The Supreme Court in Iowa ruled that American taxpayers must cover the costs for transgender patients to have gender reassignment surgery.
The Supreme Court upheld a lower court's ruling that the state cannot deny two transgender women taxpayer-funded Medicaid coverage for their sex-change surgeries.
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with medical costs for some people with limited income and resources and is usually reserved for elderly citizens, low-income families, and people with specific disabilities who desperately need healthcare but are unable to pay for it.
