Challenge of Warren County’s sex change surgery policy continues

A transsexual dentist today urged the Warren County commissioners to rethink their refusal to cover sex-change operations for their employees.

Dr. Laura Weaver and commissioners Dave Young and Tom Grossmann discussed the county policy and issues related to transgender people in society on Tuesday.

Weaver, a member of the board for Crossport, a regional nonprofit advocacy group, followed a transgender county resident who appealed last month to the commissioners to cover the surgeries.

“They consider these operations voluntary, non-essential. They are not,” Weaver said before the discussion at the end of Tuesday’s regular board of commissioners meeting. “In fact they are essential because they are lifesaving.”

With Commissioner Pat South absent, Young and Grossmann thanked Weaver for her presentation, but left no indication they would change the policy declining coverage of the surgery for employees and their dependents.

Young said his opposition was based on the surgery being among coverage mandated in 2017 by the Affordable Care Act.

Grossmann said he questioned whether the surgery should be paid for by government, comparing it to liposuction for obese people.

“When should government step in?” he asked.

Weaver said such surgeries should be covered “when the surgery is the only way to resolve the issue.”