Nevada’s Republican governor is taking heat again after signing Democrat-favored legislation that would require health insurance companies to cover transgender mutilation surgeries, including for minors.
Joe Lombardo’s decision comes at a time when Republican governors in approximately 20 states have enacted legislation prohibiting transgender procedures for individuals under the age of 18. In Kentucky, Republicans successfully overturned the veto of Democratic Governor Andy Beshear, thereby implementing a comparable ban.
“Except as otherwise provided in this section, an insurer that issues a policy of health insurance shall include in the policy coverage for the medically necessary treatment of conditions relating to gender dysphoria and gender incongruence. Such coverage must include coverage of medically necessary psychosocial and surgical intervention and any other medically necessary treatment for such disorders,” SB 163 says.
Lombardo, the state’s first GOP governor in some time, was ripped by conservatives after he signed a measure last month making Nevada a sanctuary state for abortion tourism. Regarding his latest bill signature, he said critics should read it first.
“I implore people to read the bill in its entirety,” he told reporters. “And you will see it’s not as draconian or detrimental or immoral as people are portraying it to be.”
As per the law, insurance providers, including Medicaid, have the authority to establish criteria that must be met before they are obligated to cover transgender procedures for minors. This includes the provision that insurance companies can refer to the guidelines set by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) when considering the approval of procedures such as double mastectomy for a girl identifying as a boy. Another aspect of the guideline is the allowance for insurance companies to obtain parental consent “unless the insured is expressly authorized by law to consent on his or her own behalf.”
Every Republican in the state legislature opposed the measure.
Nevada RNC Committeewoman Sigal Chattah railed at Lombardo’s decision, tweeting that he was “becoming a laughingstock across the nation.”
She also suggested that Lombardo signed it to get Democrat support for moving the Oakland Athletes MLB team to Las Vegas, where the Oakland Raiders relocated around three years ago.
“This law can fund surgical interventions for a child of any age who suffers from gender dysphoria,” Pacific Justice Institute lawyer Emily Mimnaugh told the Nevada Globe. “This law provides no protection for a religious organization, affiliated with an insurer, who objects to these surgeries and its mandate.
“This law is pushing childhood surgeries forward and pushing people of faith to the side. The new mandate is inconsistent with current state law and contrary to our constitutional guarantee of religious liberty,” he added.
