A Florida Republican is introducing legislation that would require private businesses that offer coverage for gender dysphoria treatments to also pay for reversing those treatments.
Sen. Blaise Ingoglia filed the so-called "Reverse Woke Act" this week. The bill applies regardless of whether the employee was in Florida when they first transitioned, or if they are even still employed by the company that paid for their treatments.
Ingoglia said the proposed bill, formally known as "Employer Coverage of Gender Dysphoria Treatment," is intended to protect Floridians from being "used as political pawns to advance a leftist agenda for the Governor of California."
The remark is an apparent nod to the Golden State's bill to safeguard transgender minors and their families from out-of-state legal action if they travel to California for gender-affirming care.
Ingoglia said at least 27 companies in Florida have pledged to pay for gender-affirming treatment and travel in other states.
"A lot of companies here in Florida, and Florida-ties, came out in what I believe was a political statement, saying that they would pay for those surgeries," Ingoglia told Florida's Voice. "So I said 'You know what? That's fine.' If you want to do that as a company, you also have to pay for the detransition going back if they so choose, because we know that there is a certain percentage of the population that wants to detransition -- and it's not fair to them that they have this procedure and not have a pathway back."
Ingoglia said the bill applies whether or not the employee is still with the company if they decide to detransition.
"Ten years from now, if they realize that this transition wasn't for them, they can go back to their previous employer and say 'Hey, I want to detransition according to Florida law. You have to pay for that transition,'" Ingoglia told Florida's Voice.
If a company refuses to pay for reversal treatments, they could be sued in a court of law.
According to the bill text, "an employee who received gender dysphoria treatment through coverage provided by an employer is entitled to full coverage by that employer of the total costs associated with treatment that reverses gender dysphoria treatment if the employee later determines that the gender dysphoria treatment was not appropriate for him or her and wants to reverse the treatment, regardless of whether the person is currently employed by that same employer at the time of such determination."
The bill goes on to say the employer's obligations "are not affected by whether the initial treatment is provided in this state, and an employer may not make coverage of subsequent treatment contingent on whether the employee receives such subsequent treatment in this state."
The bill defines gender dysphoria treatment as "surgery, hormone replacement therapy, or any other procedure or treatment that assists persons with gender dysphoria in transitioning to their self-identified gender."
Ingoglia told WFLA the bill is about protecting the transgender community.
"In my opinion, corporations who agree to pay for gender reaffirming surgeries in other states are exploiting the trans community for political purposes. This bill mandates these 'woke corporations' pay for a reversal if they so choose," he said.
The bill will be considered when the legislative session starts March 7. If passed, it would take effect July 1.
The legislation comes on the heels of Gov. Ron DeSantis blocking Medicaid coverage for treatments such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy for people with gender dysphoria, WKMG reported. State medical boards have also backed rules that would prevent doctors from providing such treatments to transgender minors, the outlet added.
A 2021 study published in LGBT Health found that 13.1% of identified transgender people have detransitioned at some point in their lives. The most common reasons cited for detransition were pressure from a parent (35.6%), pressure from their community or societal stigma (32.5%), or trouble finding a job (26.9%). Only 2.4% of transgender people who detransitioned attributed their decision to doubt about their gender identity.
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