GLAD Wins Tax Deduction for Sex Reassignment Surgery
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, Nov. 30, 2004
(Boston) The Internal Revenue Service has concluded that a transsexual woman
represented by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) may deduct expenses
for sex reassignment surgery as a necessary medical expense. The decision
overturned a tax examiner's refusal to allow Rhiannon O'Donnabhain's claimed
deduction because he viewed her sex reassignment surgery as "cosmetic".
As the Appeals Officer determined, however, Ms. O'Donnabhain's surgery was
medically necessary and an integral part of a professionally prescribed course
of treatment for her diagnosed condition. The decision has important
implications for other government programs as well as for private contracts of
insurance.
"This important decision recognizes that sex reassignment can be as medically
necessary for some people as an appendectomy or heart bypass surgery," said
GLAD attorney Karen Loewy, who represented Ms. O'Donnabhain in her appeal. "Any
notion that medical treatment for a transgender person is purely cosmetic is
based on misunderstanding and prejudice, not medical science."
Rhiannon O'Donnabhain underwent sex reassignment surgery in 2001 after having
been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. She and her health care providers
determined that sex reassignment surgery was a medically necessary step to enable
her to live her life as a woman.
"I am greatly relieved by the Appeals Officer's decision," said Ms.
O'Donnabhain. "While the money was important to me, so too was the underlying
principle. I hope this case sends a clear message that transgender people deserve
dignity, respect and equal treatment for our medical care."
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) is New England's leading legal
rights organization dedicated to ending discrimination based on sexual
orientation, HIV status and gender identity and expression.
