In rare lawsuit, Oregon transgender woman sues insurance companies to pay for facial surgery

A transgender woman in Oregon has filed a $375,000 lawsuit against her insurance companies and her employer, saying they’ve discriminated against her by refusing to pay for facial surgery that would make it more likely that strangers would perceive her as female.

Christina Ketcham, a 59-year-old Clatsop County employee, has already undergone sex reassignment surgery, hormone replacement therapy, worked with a voice coach and changed her name, clothes and hairstyle to reflect her gender identity, but her doctors also recommend that she undergo “facial feminization surgery” to continue on that path.

It could include rhinoplasty, reduction of her facial bones, a face lift and an eyelid lift.

Her doctors have determined the surgery is “medically necessary” to treat Ketcham’s gender dysphoria. She was diagnosed with gender dysphoria four years ago but has experienced it since childhood, according to the suit.

But from 2016 to 2019, Citycounty Insurance Services, which provides coverage to Clatsop County employees, and Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon, which administers the plan, have turned down Ketcham’s request to cover the cost of the surgery, the suit says. Representatives from Citycounty Insurance Services and Clatsop County didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Jared Ishkanian, a spokesperson for Regence, said the company couldn’t discuss the pending litigation but supports "our members with comprehensive, medically necessary transgender services.”


https://www.oregonlive.com/news/2019/07/in-rare-lawsuit-oregon-transgender-woman-sues-insurance-companies-to-pay-for-facial-surgery.html

Let's get down to earth, here. A nose job? Gender dysphoria? Um...buy her a six-pack and she'll feel great about herself.