Equality California Applauds Multistate Lawsuit Challenging Trump Administration’s Attack on Healthcare Access

LOS ANGELES - Equality California, the nation's largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, applauds California Attorney General Rob Bonta for filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration's latest attempt to restrict access to healthcare for millions of Americans, including transgender people accessing essential healthcare through state and federal marketplace plans. The new federal rule, set to take effect in August, would strip coverage from up to 1.8 million people and exclude gender-affirming care as an essential health benefit under the Affordable Care Act. In response, Equality California Executive Director Tony Hoang issued the following statement:

"We are grateful to Attorney General Rob Bonta for taking bold legal action against the Trump administration's unlawful and deeply harmful effort to further dismantle the Affordable Care Act. This is not about preventing fraud or increasing efficiency - it's about slashing enrollment, driving up costs, and stripping coverage from millions of Americans, especially transgender people accessing essential healthcare.

The regulations would force people off their insurance, shorten open enrollment periods, hike out-of-pocket costs, and exclude gender-affirming care as an essential health benefit in state and federal marketplace plans - shifting the financial burden to states and jeopardizing access to care for countless transgender people across the country. While California's strong healthcare protections remain in place, this move is a transparent attempt to weaken coverage nationwide and punish states for supporting transgender people.

This is a direct attack on transgender people, low-income families, and anyone who doesn't fit into their divisive vision of who deserves care. This administration is willing to put millions of lives at risk simply to advance a dangerous, anti-trans agenda rooted in fear and bigotry.

Equality California proudly supports this lawsuit and stands with AG Bonta and the other 19 attorneys general in the fight to protect access to care. California will not sit back while Trump tries to dismantle our healthcare system and put lives at risk. Healthcare is a human right, not a political bargaining chip."

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