3 sue to strike Georgia ban on transgender care for workers

ATLANTA (AP) — Two state employees and a public school media clerk are suing the state of Georgia, saying state health insurance illegally discriminates by refusing to pay for gender-transition health care.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Atlanta on Wednesday by Micha Rich, Benjamin Johnson and an anonymous state employee suing on behalf of her adult child.

They argue Georgia's State Health Benefit Plan, which insures more than 660,000 state government and public school employees and retirees, is breaking federal law.

“The exclusion not only harms the health and finances of transgender people seeking gender dysphoria treatment, it also reinforces the stigma attached to being transgender, suffering from gender dysphoria and seeking a gender transition,” the lawsuit argues. “The exclusion communicates to transgender persons and to the public that their state government deems them unworthy of equal treatment.”

The plaintiffs said the rule should be overturned and they should be repaid for the money they spent on procedures not covered by insurance. They have also requested money damages and attorneys’ fees.

State officials didn't immediately respond Wednesday to requests for comment on the lawsuit.

The lawsuit cites a 2020 Supreme Court ruling that treating someone differently because they are transgender or gay violates a section of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex. The plaintiffs in that case included an employee of Georgia's Clayton County.

The suit also argues that Georgia's actions violate the 14th Amendment right to equal protection, and that in the case of Johnson, violate federal prohibitions against sex discrimination in education.

It's the fourth in a line of lawsuits against Georgia agencies to force them...