LEXIE CANNES STATE OF TRANS — In Washington DC, Mayor Vincent Gray last week announced new standards for nearly all private and public health insurance plans throughout the District. Reportedly the new standard means trans people will among the most comprehensive policy in the United States. This includes coverage for all transition-related care.
Mayor Gray: “This action places the District at the forefront of advancing the rights of transgender individuals. It also fully implements the District’s Human Rights Act by incorporating gender identity and expression as protected classes in the District’s health insurance laws.”
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Salem, Massachusetts passed a transgender inclusive non-discrimination ordinance last week according to the Massachusetts Transgender Equal Rights Coalition. A signing ceremony will be held on March 3rd in Mayor Kimberly Driscoll’s office. Mayor Driscoll is a champion of the ordinance.
MassEquality’s Kara Coredini: “Although the state nondiscrimination laws do not yet provide protections from discrimination for transgender people in public places, local ordinances like those in Boston, Cambridge, Amherst, Northampton and now Salem fill that gap and provide these essential protections.”
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Thumbs up to Mayors Gray and Driscoll for standing up for transgender citizens!
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LEXIE CANNES STATE OF TRANS is associated with Wipe Out Transphobia: http://www.wipeouttransphobia.com/
Read Lexie Cannes in The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/courtney-odonnell/
Categories: Discrimination, Equality, Civil Rights, Legislative, Policy, Administrative, Transgender, Transsexual, Trans
LEXIE CANNES STATE OF TRANS 
Trans human rights are slowly but surely becoming a reality within the US. But, much more work ahead to widen those rights to all the States that don’t have them protected by law.
Wow. The only thing I knew about Salem before was through Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible in which they burned witches. Thanks for the update 🙂
Jane, there are a number of “Salems” in the United States!
And the Simpsons live in Salem. Salem MA finally makes a U-turn from the intolerance of Puritanism and witch trials to a transgender inclusive non-discrimination ordinance, though D.C. took a giant leap ahead of most everyone!