New Orleans: Queer and trans community fights back against attacks on healthcare
New Orleans, LA – On Friday, September 5, members of the Queer and Trans Community Action Project held a rally outside of the Louisiana Department of Health to protest Medicaid no longer covering hormone replacement therapy (HRT). This loss of coverage, combined with the recent anti-trans legislation introduced by Louisiana’s Governor Jeff Landry, has sparked outrage among the queer and trans community in New Orleans.
Protesters rallied with slogans such as, “HRT saves lives” and “Protect trans healthcare” in response to the Louisiana Department of Health secretly changing their policy to prohibit federal funding for HRT. The only exception to this policy is those with medically diagnosed gender dysphoria.
Many trans people in Louisiana rely heavily on Medicaid’s low-cost health insurance to provide them with affordable medication.
Rory Macdonald of Freedom Road Socialist Organization began their speech by chanting, “When HRT is under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!” They went on to say, “LGBT people are twice as likely to be on Medicaid as other Americans. By taking away insurance coverage for life saving medication, Trump and Jeff Landry hope to impoverish trans people even more.”
In 2021, there was a unanimous resolution at the New Orleans city council to protect transgender and gender non-conforming people’s healthcare and wellbeing. Since then, no changes have been made in the city to keep LGBTQ people safe.
Molly Frayle from the Queer and Trans Community Action Project (QTCAP) said, “The city council's resolution to keep New Orleans a safe place for its LGBTQ citizens has produced nothing. There has been no material, concrete protections enacted. It makes you wonder if it was all a political game, like they are using us as tools to advance their careers.”
Another QTCAP member, River Lynn, expressed their personal experiences with the new changes within Medicaid’s policy. “Being wholly dependent on Medicaid to fund my prescriptions, I have lost access to the medical treatments that I need to survive and survive well.” said River. “Cutting access to gender affirming care among the poor and disabled is akin to practicing cruel medical experiments on innocent human beings. Decades of research have already given us the results: people die.”
Members of the rally sent a clear message that attacks on the transgender people of Louisiana will not stand. The LGBTQ people of New Orleans will continue to fight with allies at their side.