The Report Is Out

Every year the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities issues their annual report on discrimination complaints and this is for fiscal year of 2020.

2. Complaints Filed by Type of Charge
Complaints are classified by the predominant allegation and the allegedly violated statutes. In situations where, for example, a complaint contains mixed allegations of a denial of employment and denial of public accommodations, the complaint would be classified according to what the majority of the allegations relate to. Complaints classified as “Other” include those not readily classified as one of the other categories.
Employment 1922
Housing 187
Public Accommodations 196
Other 14
Total 2319

They break it down by categories…

CHRO Complaints Filed by Basis and Type
Gender Identity:
Employment: 30
Housing: 0
Public Accommodation: 3
Other: 0

Sexual Orientation:
Employment: 54
Housing: 6
Public Accommodation: 4
Other: 0

I am trying to find out where the discrimination happened and the decisions in the cases.


One of the major cases that was heard this year was…

CHRO Issues Declaratory Ruling Regarding Discrimination in Insurance Coverage for Transgender Individuals
Posted on April 24, 2020 by ctchro


At its April meeting, the Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities issued a declaratory ruling regarding the categorization by health insurers of certain gender confirming surgeries as cosmetic. Under this ruling, the first of its kind in the nation, the Commission determined that:

It is discriminatory on the basis of gender identity and sex for the State of Connecticut or a municipality to offer an insurance plan which categorically denies coverage for certain procedures as treatments for gender dysphoria.

It is discriminatory on the basis of gender identity and sex for the State of Connecticut or a municipality to offer an insurance plan which covers procedures to treat certain conditions which it denies or excludes to treat gender dysphoria.

It is discriminatory on the basis of gender identity and sex to offer or administer plans to the State of Connecticut or a municipality with these kinds of exclusions or disparities.

While this ruling does not find the State of Connecticut, any particular municipality, or any particular insurer liable for a specific discriminatory practice, it does provide guidance to these entities as to whether any of their current practices are discriminatory.

Under current Connecticut law, the Connecticut Insurance Department has determined that insurance entities are prohibited from having a blanket policy exclusion for gender transition. Surgeries that alter primary sex characteristics are typically covered, as well as hormone therapy. However, in order to properly treat gender dysphoria, many transgender individuals need medical or surgical interventions beyond surgeries involving primary sex characteristics. These procedures, such as facial feminization, are often considered “cosmetic” by insurers and are therefore not covered. The Commission’s ruling makes clear that a blanket denial of these sorts of procedures when being pursued as treatment for gender dysphoria can be considered a discriminatory practice in state and municipal insurance plans, and that an individualized assessment of each patient’s needs is necessary.

This ruling provides crucial protections to transgender people working to treat gender dysphoria. Connecticut has long been a leader in the protection of this vulnerable group and this ruling puts the state back in the forefront of the fight against discrimination on the basis of gender identity and expression.

Boston Spirit had this to say about the ruling.

Connecticut challenges insurance exclusions for gender-affirming care
By Rob Phelps
April 25, 2020


The Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities issued a milestone ruling on Friday prohibiting employers and insurers from denying coverage for treatments related to gender transition.

Ironically, this comes on the same day news broke about the US Department of Health and Human Services pushing forward with plans—during the COVID-19 crisis, no less—to “remove explicit protections for LGBTQ people in health care programs and activities by excluding protections from discrimination based on sex stereotyping and gender identity,” according to an April 24 Human Rights Campaign statement.

What that might mean to the Connecticut Commission’s new ruling is yet to be seen. Nevertheless, the Commission is carrying on.
[…]
“We applaud the Commission for recognizing the critical healthcare needs of transgender people and calling out the discrimination inherent in health plans that deny care,” said GLAD Senior Attorney Ben Klein in the statement.

As the Executive Director of the Connecticut TransAdvoacy Coalition we applied for intervenor status, and was granted permission to appear and file a brief as amicus curiae. The declaratory ruling required insurance companies to cover what is normally cosmetic surgeries if a doctor says it is medically necessary.