A federal appeals court has ruled that West Virginia Medicaid is not required to pay for gender-affirming surgery.
The decision came from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, which reversed an earlier ruling in the case. The court determined that the state’s Medicaid program can exclude coverage for gender-affirming surgical procedures.
The case centers on whether the state must provide coverage for the procedures under federal anti-discrimination law. By reversing its previous position, the appeals court cleared the way for West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources to maintain the policy excluding the surgeries from Medicaid coverage.
Officials with the state had argued the program is allowed to set limits on what procedures it covers, while challengers maintained the exclusion amounted to discrimination.
The ruling marks a significant development in an ongoing legal battle over Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming care in West Virginia. Further legal appeals could still follow.
