By Annie Kurtz, Senior Staff Attorney
In February of this year, we filed a lawsuit against Children’s Hospital Colorado (CHCO), alleging that the hospital violated the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act when it stopped providing medically necessary surgeries to transgender patients over the age of 18. This stoppage was announced without warning and did not include plans to ensure continuity of care. According to the complaint, CHCO continues to provide the same procedures for reasons other than treatment of gender dysphoria.
Our client, who is proceeding under the pseudonym Caden Kent to protect his privacy, is an 18-year-old trans patient at CHCO whose anticipated procedure was canceled under the hospital’s new policy. CHCO doctors had determined the procedure was medically necessary for Caden, and he had just received the necessary insurance authorization when the hospital adopted the exclusionary policy and refused to move forward with his care. Our complaint asserts that CHCO violated the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act by denying Caden full and equal access to care based on sex, gender identity, gender expression, and disability.
When our client came forward, he did so to protect other trans people from the discrimination he experienced. In filing this lawsuit, we hope to ensure that no trans person is denied medically necessary care because of who they are. We hope to show that we are prepared to hold medical providers with discriminatory policies and practices accountable in court.