On Jan. 1, the Trans Health Equity Act took effect in Maryland, expanding the state’s Medicaid program to cover a comprehensive array of gender-affirming health care services—from hormone therapy and lab testing to surgery and post-transition support.
Four weeks later, and some 2,000 miles away, Utah’s governor signed into law a bill that prohibits transgender individuals from using bathrooms in public buildings that correspond with their gender identity. It even imposes criminal penalties on people who use locker rooms or changing rooms in public buildings that don’t correspond to their sex assigned at birth.
The above is an excerpt of a piece originally published in US World & News Report.