VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – Two-Spirit, trans, and non-binary (TTNB) people in Canada face significant barriers when seeking transition-related health services. Financial burdens, lengthy wait times, and a lack of qualified practitioners all limit access to life-saving medical treatments. Data collected in 2019 indicate only 26% of TTNB people had received all the gender-affirming care they needed.1
A report released today by Community-Based Research Centre (CBRC) and coauthors, Making It Easier and Safer to Medically Transition in Canada, outlines recommendations for change. The report calls for specific actions from provincial and federal governments to guarantee gender-diverse people have access to the care they need.
“Medically transitioning can profoundly improve people’s lives, including significantly reducing suicidal ideation and gender dysphoria,” says CBRC Executive Director, Michael Kwag. “But our healthcare system is failing to provide this life-saving care in a way that’s accessible and consistent.”
Currently, access to services for medical transitioning—like hormones, surgeries, and hair removal—varies across provinces, and barriers for TTNB people are often substantial.
The report calls on the provincial and territorial governments to expand coverage for gender-affirming services, support providers to offer better care, and improve infrastructure to support TTNB people throughout their transition. The report also calls for action at the federal level, including setting national benchmarks for gender-affirming surgery wait times.
In some jurisdictions, current policies on gender-affirming care aren’t just limiting access, they are also coercive.
“TTNB people are being coerced into unwanted and medically unnecessary procedures," says Nathaniel Le May, an advocate who has spoken out previously about barriers to accessing care in Ontario.2,3" Because we don't fit society's expectation of gender, people feel the need to 'correct' us into the binary. However, evidence-based standards of care, like WPATH4, indicate medical transition needs to be individualized without necessarily aiming to express an alternative, binary gender."
To effectively improve health outcomes for TTNB people, the report also calls for adherence to evidence-based standards of care, clear pathways for patients, and an end to coercive practices.
In addition to improving mental health outcomes, medical services for transitioning can provide significant social benefits associated with living and being perceived in the world as one’s gender. This can include reduced workplace and housing-related discrimination.
About CBRC
Community-Based Research Centre promotes the health of people of diverse sexualities and genders through research and intervention development. CBRC’s core pillars of community-led research, knowledge exchange, network building, and leadership development position the organization as a thought leader, transforming ideas into actions that make a difference in our communities. CBRC was incorporated in 1999 and is a non-profit charitable organization. Our main office is located in Vancouver, British Columbia; we also have satellite offices located in Edmonton, Toronto, and Halifax.
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For interviews, please contact:
Michael Ianni
Media Relations Officer, CBRC
[email protected]
604.345.7689
1. Trans Pulse Canada. Health and health care access for trans and non-binary people in Canada. [Internet]. 2020. Available at: https://transpulsecanada.ca/results/report-1/.
2. Bielski, Z. Non-binary person says OHIP discriminated against him, denying coverage for phalloplasty surgery. The Globe and Mail. February 22, 2023. Available at: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-non-binary-person-says-ohip-discriminated-against-him-denying-coverage/
3. Bielski, Z. OHIP reverses course, will fund gender-affirming surgery for Ottawa public servant. The Globe and Mail. June 16, 2023. Available at: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-ohip-gender-affirming-surgery-case/#:~:text=OHIP%20has%20reversed%20its%20stance,procedure%20for%20nearly%20a%20year.https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-non-binary-person-says-ohip-discriminated-against-him-denying-coverage/
4. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) is recognized as an international authority in TTNB health. The standards of care published by WPATH are considered a fundamental resource to guide gender-affirming care in Canada and internationally. see: Standards of Care for the Health of Transgender and Gender Diverse People, Version 8, Statement 13.8
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