Transgender Employee Denied Treatment Settles With Oswego, N.Y.

A transgender former employee of Oswego County, N.Y., has settled his claims against the county after it denied coverage for his gender dysphoria treatments under the county health plan.

Sean Simonson, a retired employee of the Oswego County Department of Social Services, sought coverage for hormone treatments and a double mastectomy as part of his transition from female to male. The county health plan denied coverage under a categorical exclusion for coverage of care that is “connected to sex change surgery, transsexualism” or “gender dysphoria.”

Simonson’s settlement, reached Aug. 23, awarded him past medical expenses and $20,000 in damages. The ...