An estimated 14,000 trans federal employees would be impacted by this policy change.
President Donald Trump’s Week 1 executive order blocking federal funds from hospitals that provide gender-affirming care to children also included a provision to exclude that same coverage from both the Federal Employee Health Benefits and Postal Service Health Benefits programs. The administration finalized a rule in June to modify the Affordable Care Act, removing requirements that insurance providers cover gender-affirming care as essential, which advocates say will decrease the number of plans that cover that care.
Under this letter, which was sent out to FEHB and PSHB carriers on Friday according to David Ermer, an attorney with Ermer & Suter, insurance companies that contract with the federal government will begin prohibiting coverage for transgender adults in 2026.
“For Plan Year 2026, chemical and surgical modification of an individual’s sex traits through medical interventions (to include ‘gender transition’ services) will no longer be covered under the FEHB and PSHB Programs. This exclusion expands upon Carrier Letter 2025-01a and applies regardless of age,” the letter states.
The Office of Personnel Management did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.
