GOP Governor Signs Legislation Requiring Health Insurance Companies Cover Transgender Procedures For Minors

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R) signed legislation Monday requiring health insurance companies, including Medicaid, to “cover the treatment of conditions relating to gender dysphoria and gender incongruence.”

The bill includes “persons who are less than 18 years of age.”

The bill reads: “An insurer that issues a policy of health insurance may prescribe requirements that must be satisfied before the insurer covers surgical treatment of conditions relating to gender dysphoria or gender incongruence for an insured who is less than 18 years of age. Such requirements may include, without limitation, requirements that:

(a) The treatment must be recommended by a psychologist, psychiatrist or other mental health professional; (b) The treatment must be recommended by a physician; (c) The insured must provide a written expression of the desire
of the insured to undergo the treatment; (d) A written plan for treatment that covers at least 1 year must be developed and approved by at least two providers of health care; and (e) Parental consent is provided for the insured unless the insured is expressly authorized by law to consent on his or her own behalf.”

Today Nevada solidifies its ranking as the BEST place to live as an openly LGBTQ person, as #SB163 was signed into law. NO INSURANCE COMPANY can deny medically necessary coverage to trans people here!
w/ @DallasHarrisNV @Senatorspearman @CeceliaGNV @NVSenateDems
1/2 pic.twitter.com/hDuahJ5iAt

— Melanie Scheible (@MelanieScheible) June 13, 2023

SB 163 reads:

Nevada GOP governor backs sex changes for kids…

Nevada 's GOP governor signs bill to require 'child sex changes' to be covered by insurance companieshttps://t.co/7tGSEnawgb

— Libby Emmons (@libbyemmons) June 16, 2023

The Post Millennial reports:

According to Nevada Current, Lombardo also signed a bill that requires the state’s Department of Corrections to develop regulations around the housing of transgender inmates as well as providing medical and mental health care for them.

In a statement, Democratic state Senator Melanie Scheible said, “At a time when states across the country are passing draconian laws to restrict trans and nonbinary people’s right to exist, Nevada is doing the opposite.”

Lombardo stopped short of allowing Nevada to become another sanctuary state for gender dysphoric youth when he vetoed Senate Bill 302 earlier this month. The bill would have prevented medical providers from losing their licenses for providing gender-affirming care and would have prohibited his office from assisting in out-of-state prosecutions.

Lombardo faced criticism from Republicans for passing legislation requiring health insurance companies cover transgender procedures for minors.

“Nevada’s ‘GOP’ Governor is becoming a laughingstock across the nation,” Nevada RNC Committeewoman Sigal Chattah said.

I was joking that #NVDems must be microdosing him – unfortunately Nevada’s “GOP” Governor is becoming a laughingstock across the nation. https://t.co/vHKhTF7g79

— Sigal Chattah (@Chattah4Nevada) June 13, 2023

“Republican gov signing every piece of trash the left puts before him, including mandating gender surgical coverage, so that the legislature will give him a Las Vegas stadium for the Oakland A’s. Who’s going to pay for the detransition when most patients regret this madness?” Harmeet Dhillon wrote.

Republican gov signing every piece of trash the left puts before him, including mandating gender surgical coverage, so that the legislature will give him a Las Vegas stadium for the Oakland A’s. Who’s going to pay for the detransition when most patients regret this madness? https://t.co/0dTySRNwUI

— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) June 13, 2023

Fox News noted:

Signing that bill has led to internal party criticism for Lombardo, the former sheriff of Clark County who was the only Republican to unseat a Democratic incumbent governor in the 2022 midterms.

Nevada’s Republican National Committeewoman Sigal Chattah called Lombardo a “laughingstock across the nation” in a tweet.

“I implore people to read the bill in its entirety,” Lombardo told reporter Tuesday, adding that it mainly shores up already-existing procedures. “And you will see it’s not as draconian or detrimental or immoral as people are portraying it to be.”

One of the sponsor’s of the bill signed Monday, Democratic Senator Melanie Scheible, had framed the legislation as a way to save the state money due to potential losses in lawsuits against state Medicaid. She cited a 2015 declaration from the state’s division of insurance that prohibits the denial of medically necessary care on the basis of gender identity.

“The idea is to clear up any ambiguity and to put the answer in the statute, instead of waiting for an answer from a court,” Scheible said in an interview earlier in the session.

Many credit the declaration as to why more major gender-affirming surgeries are increasingly deemed “medically necessary” rather than “cosmetic” in Nevada by insurance companies, thus making more gender-affirming surgeries covered.

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According to Network in Vegas, Lombardo made a deal with Democrats to pass legislation to help the MLB’s Oakland Athletics move to Las Vegas.

https://twitter.com/Networkinvegas/status/1669440038843867137

From Network in Vegas:

The recent passage of a bill that will help the Oakland A’s relocate to Las Vegas has been met with mixed reactions, mainly due to the questionable terms of the deal. As we reported earlier in the week, Governor Joe Lombardo was so desperate to get the Stadium built in Las Vegas that he made a deal with Democrats to fund transgender surgery for children and provide hundreds of millions of dollars for a stadium project. Additionally, allegations of political maneuvering and corruption have further fueled public outrage.

The Nevada Assembly just approved the bill (SB1), allocating $380 million in taxpayer money for the project — despite the fact that the Oakland A’s owner is worth an estimated $2.9 billion. The legislation was rushed through as an “emergency measure,” reminiscent of Governor Sisolak’s controversial use of emergency mandates throughout his term as governor. Many conservatives view this as yet another betrayal by supposed Republican Governor Joe Lombardo, who now appears to be following in Sisolak’s footsteps by misusing taxpayer money to benefit a billionaire’s interests in building Las Vegas sports stadiums.