A transgender Dignity Health employee filed suit against the San Francisco-based hospital chain Monday, alleging the system wrongfully denied him coverage for hormone therapy and sex-reassignment surgery, reports SF Gate.
Plaintiff Joe Robinson, an operating room nurse at Chandler (Ariz.) Regional Medical Center, said Dignity Health's official policy of refusing coverage to its employees for all treatment related to sex-transformation surgery violates federal laws against sex discrimination, according to a compliant obtained by SF Gate.
Specifically, the lawsuit alleges Dignity's policy violates regulations released by HHS last month that prohibit healthcare companies that receive federal aid from denying coverage to plan members for health services related to gender transformation.
Dignity is a privately owned hospital chain that operates 39 medical facilities in California, Arizona and Nevada. More than half of those facilities are affiliated with the Catholic Church, according to the article.