Archive in Action: A Call to Defend Gender-Affirming Care
Working together to protect progress for all transgender Americans
Archive in Action is a new series by Rey and the Archive for activating civic engagement to protect LGBTQ+ rights in the United States. Here you will find bite-sized actions and ways to get involved with the issues that directly impact transgender and queer Americans.
Overview
It was a somber Thursday when the U.S House passed the “One Big, Beautiful Bill” (H.R.1)—by a single vote: 215-214. This bill will directly impact anyone who identifies as transgender, intersex or nonbinary and relies on Medicaid or the Affordable Care Act (ACA). This bill now heads to the Senate and you can read the full bill here.
Here’s a quick summary of what the bill does:
Bans Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) from covering any form of gender-affirming care, regardless of age.
Removes gender-affirming care from the ACA's essential health benefits, opening the door for insurance providers and states to deny coverage.
Imposes new barriers to accessing Medicaid, which hits communities already facing discrimination in the job market.
Redefines “sex” in federal policy in a way that targets transgender and intersex people, limiting protections based on gender identity.
Take Action
Step 1: Find your senators.
Go to senate.gov/senators and click your state. You’ll see phone numbers and offices to contact.
Step 2: Make the call or send an email.
Here’s a script you can use:
“My name is [insert name], I’m a constituent from [city, state]. I’m urging Senator [name] to vote no on H.R.1—the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. It targets transgender people and strips access to medically necessary care. Please vote no.”
Keep it short. Keep it direct. You don’t need to explain your humanity.
Step 3: Spread the word.
Share this article. Send it in your group chat. Text your friends and chosen family. Print it out and bring it to your community space. Do whatever you can to keep people informed and mobilized.
Stay informed, stay engaged, and do not lose hope. If you want to keep up with the latest attacks and the efforts to fight them, make sure to subscribe. If you found this recap helpful, please share it with your community. Visibility and action matter.
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My son (18) has his first appointment at a gender-affirming clinic here in VA coming up soon. The clinic is safe from all of this crap, even in our purple state with our red governor, simply because they don't accept insurance. So sure, you can get gender-affirming care... for a cash price. It's still discounted, don't get me wrong, but it's still way more expensive than a traditional insurance copay would be for every appointment, much less the treatments. He just started a full-time job, and a hefty chunk of his earnings are going towards starting his medical transition. Having these vital services covered by insurance would free up his earnings to... building credit. Purchasing an apartment vs. renting forever. Investing. Building a safety net. There's so much more he could do with this money than paying cash for his necessary healthcare.