Breaking News – APA Comes Out With A Statement On Transgender Rights

The American Psychological Association (APA) yesterday issues resolutions supporting transgender right and the “Medical Necessity” of treatment for transgender individuals.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT APA opposes all public and private discrimination on the basis of actual or perceived gender identity and expression and urges the repeal of discriminatory laws and policies;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT APA supports the passage of laws and policies protecting the rights, legal benefits, and privileges of people of all gender identities and expressions;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT APA supports full access to employment, housing, and education regardless of gender identity and expression;
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THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT APA supports the provision of adequate and medically necessary mental and medical health care treatment for transgender and gender variant individuals;
THEREFORE, BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT APA recognizes the efficacy, benefit and medical necessity of gender transition treatments for appropriately evaluated individuals and calls upon public and private insurers to cover these medically necessary treatments;
THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT APA supports access to appropriate treatment in institutional settings for people of all gender identities and expressions; including access to appropriate health care services including gender transition therapies;

The APA now joins the American Medical Association (AMA) and the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) in stating the “medical necessity” of the treatment for transgender individuals.
However, the APA as in their Task Force on Gender Identity and Gender Variance report stated…

Access to Sex-Segregated Facilities

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There are many variations on the dilemmas posed by sex-segregated facilities, including whether to allow abused transgender women to use shelters for abused biological women, given that many of the residents of the shelter will have been abused by biological males and may be upset by their presence. Solutions to this issue include providing individual placement in alternate facilities (such as hotels) and providing training to shelter personal on how to address these issues such as directly addressing the concerns of other shelter clients and establishing a norm that all women are welcome. Access to facilities becomes a particularly challenging issue for persons transitioning on the job (for example, at what point in the transition should individuals use the restrooms consistent with their gender identity) or attending university (for example, what is the appropriate housing situation, locker room or sports team affiliation?)

These examples illustrate a number of dilemmas facing transgender people using gender-segregated facilities. While not every transgender individual will face the issue of prisons or shelters, most transgender people do face the issue of which restroom facilities to use. The situation is particularly difficult for those who have not fully transitioned or may never transition fully. Given the expense, risks, and technological limitations of genital surgery, many transgender men who fully transition may not have genital surgery. There are very real concerns about which restrooms transgender should use, in which dormitories they should reside, and in which gender they should compete in sports. The list of difficult situations is daunting.

Truth be told, many of these situations can be resolved with a combination of compassion, justice, accurate information, and common sense—ingredients that are sometimes lacking in decision-making processes.While these usually are not situations that APA can affect directly, APA can adopt resolutions—publicly supporting the rights of transgender people to appropriately gendered treatment—and can file amicus briefs in relevant court cases on behalf of transgender people. Additionally, APA can provide guidance to therapists who are working with transgender clients to advocate on their client’s behalf and to help them navigate these situations.