Tuesday, March 10, 2009
It would seem Oxfordshire PCT are being toerags.
< scrobbled from other places >
For people in the UK:
Oxfordshire PCT has decided that just having gender dysphoria and demonstrating the criteria that any other PCT would need to start treatment isn't enough. Exceptional circumstances are needed, and other illnesses have to have been caused by this condition. The bar is set very high, far higher than it is in other UK areas. There's a detailed paper on this here but in (very brief) summary:
* Oxfordshire PCT has decided to classify this illness as merely a low priority 'psychological state', which needs not have treatment funded until it has caused other severe health problems. These actually disbar surgery, so if you get a referral then you won't get the surgery.
* It is unlawful to make this kind of policy decision as it effectively bars transsexualism from treatment (as per The Parliamentary Forum on Transsexualism)
* Other PCTs in the region do not require "exceptional circumstances" to be proved before authorising treatment for this.
So this effectively amounts to instituionalised transphobia. Please take a moment to read this petition on the subject. You do need to be in the UK and give your name and address to sign it, but that is a standard part of all official UK e-petitions: Petition at number10.gov.uk (oh, and it can take a while for the signature list to be refreshed, so don't panic!)
FOR EVERYONE:
Spreading this far and wide will help the cause, so please feel free to link to this post or cut/paste bits into your own journals and blogs.
For people in the UK:
Oxfordshire PCT has decided that just having gender dysphoria and demonstrating the criteria that any other PCT would need to start treatment isn't enough. Exceptional circumstances are needed, and other illnesses have to have been caused by this condition. The bar is set very high, far higher than it is in other UK areas. There's a detailed paper on this here but in (very brief) summary:
* Oxfordshire PCT has decided to classify this illness as merely a low priority 'psychological state', which needs not have treatment funded until it has caused other severe health problems. These actually disbar surgery, so if you get a referral then you won't get the surgery.
* It is unlawful to make this kind of policy decision as it effectively bars transsexualism from treatment (as per The Parliamentary Forum on Transsexualism)
* Other PCTs in the region do not require "exceptional circumstances" to be proved before authorising treatment for this.
So this effectively amounts to instituionalised transphobia. Please take a moment to read this petition on the subject. You do need to be in the UK and give your name and address to sign it, but that is a standard part of all official UK e-petitions: Petition at number10.gov.uk (oh, and it can take a while for the signature list to be refreshed, so don't panic!)
FOR EVERYONE:
Spreading this far and wide will help the cause, so please feel free to link to this post or cut/paste bits into your own journals and blogs.
Labels: gender dysphoria, health, petitions, transgenderism, United Kingdom
