SickoRicko'sCrap...: 6/7/20

Saturday, June 13, 2020

2020.0613.0009...

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Trump finalizes rollback of LGBTQ patient protections

The Trump administration on Friday formally rolled back an Obama-era policy that protected LGBTQ patients from discrimination and required robust language translation services, unnerving health experts who worry vulnerable populations will face further risks during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The move — long sought by some of President Donald Trump's supporters in the conservative Christian community — is the latest effort by Trump to mobilize his religious base amid criticism over his handling of the coronavirus outbreak and the recent protests over the death of George Floyd in police custody.

The new Trump administration rules reverse an Obama policy that banned health care providers from discriminating against transgender patients and women seeking abortions. The Obama administration had issued the first-time protections for LGBTQ patients under a nondiscrimination clause in the Affordable Care Act, citing concerns from advocates these patients had a harder time accessing necessary care.

The Trump administration overhaul, which had been years in the making, came against warnings from health care groups that the rollback could make it easier for hospitals and health care workers to discriminate against patients based on their gender or sexual orientation. It also was panned by advocates who noted that the rule was released on the four-year anniversary of the mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, where 49 people were killed and dozens more injured.

"These actions demonstrate how little this Administration values the life, health and safety of LGBTQ people," said Sharita Gruberg of the Center for American Progress. "It’s even more of a disgrace to do so on the anniversary of the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ community in US history."