Kyler Prescott was a 14 year old transgender boy who was receiving puberty-delaying medication to help him transition.  Shortly before Kyler’s death he had “suicidal ideation” and was taken to Rady Children’s Hospital – San Diego in April 2015.  The hospital has a Gender Management Clinic to provide services to children with gender dysphoria and related issues.  A lawsuit under the ACA’s non-discrimination provision, § 1557, alleges that after admission, despite assurances that he would be referred to with masculine pronouns, hospital employees referred to Kyler as a girl.  The suit claims that the hospital’s actions discriminated against Prescott “resulting in his inability to access necessary services and treatment during a dire medical crisis.” The federal lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of California, further alleges that the use of female references exacerbated his condition and that he thereafter had further difficulties and ultimately committed suicide.

As discussed in our recent Advisory, HHS’s Office of Civil Rights (“OCR”) final § 1557 regulations explicitly include coverage for gender identity and sexual stereotypes.  They also state that covered entities must “treat individuals consistent with their gender identity . . . .” 45 C.F.R. § 92.206.  This lawsuit appears to be one of the first under § 1557 for gender identity discrimination.  It will surely not be the last.

The suit focuses on claims that nurses and other staff repeatedly used feminine pronouns in referring to Kyler despite assertions in the court pleadings of multiple calls by his mother to the hospital to explain his distress at this alleged conduct.  Hospital staff failed to use Kyler’s preferred pronouns despite hospital records showing Kyler’s legal name and gender change from female to male, according to the suit.

The results of the lawsuit, which at this time are only unproven allegations, will await further court proceedings. What the suit clearly shows, however, is that compliance with § 1557’s notice and policy requirements, effective October 16, was only the beginning of § 1557 compliance needs for covered health care entities.  Among the necessary next steps in compliance with which we are assisting clients are developing appropriate training of all staff interacting with patients and companions on the requirements of § 1557 in providing services, proper categorization of gender in health care records and in-patient references, as well as the need for training and visibility on provider non-discrimination and grievance policies.  This lawsuit dramatically emphasizes the urgency for continuing efforts to achieve full compliance with § 1557 and the OCR final regulations to avoid § 1557 discrimination claims on the expansive grounds covered by § 1557 as interpreted in OCR’s final regulations.