Health Affairs | March 7, 2022
Read the PublicationOn March 2, 2022, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued new guidance on civil rights protections for transgender youth, their families, and providers that offer gender-affirming health care services. The guidance explains how attempts to restrict access to gender-affirming care, or disclose patient information about this care, could violate federal nondiscrimination protections such as Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), among others. OCR strongly encourages patients and providers who have faced discrimination to file a complaint here.