NEWS
State-funded sex changes face opposition
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Also by Thomas Leece:
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by Thomas Leece
Friday, February 11, 2005
A new bill was proposed Wednesday in the Wisconsin State Legislature that would make it illegal for state prison inmates to receive state funding for gender reassignment treatments, including hormone therapy and surgery.
The bill, proposed by state Reps. Mark Gundrum, R-New Berlin; Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford; and state Sen. Ted Kanavas, R-Brookfield, would change the current Department of Correction policy allowing certain inmates with gender identity disorder to receive hormone treatments at the state’s expense.
The bill has been proposed in response to a federal court case filed by a Wisconsin inmate who has developed female characteristics as a result of the state-funded hormonal treatments. Donna Kronitzer, born Scott Kronitzer, is suing the state for not completing the sexual reassignment process and funding an operation to give her female genitals.
In addition to Kronitzer, there are several other Wisconsin inmates who are receiving hormone-therapy treatments, according to Suder.
“We don’t think that it is an appropriate use of public funds, to spend it on sex-change operations for inmates,” Kanavas said. “The notion that state taxpayers should be paying for this guy’s treatment is completely outrageous.”
Individuals with gender identity disorder wish to live as the opposite gender as a result of a chronic discomfort with the gender of their birth, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
This relatively rare condition can lead to genital mutilation, severe depression and suicide. One in 30,000 individuals born male and one in 100,000 individuals born female are affected by the disorder, according to the manual.
The hormone treatments, which can cost between $760 and $1,600 per year, cause male individuals to develop more female features, such as breasts, and reduces the amount of facial and chest hair, according to Bill Clausius, spokesman for the Department of Corrections. Genital reassignment surgery generally follows the hormonal treatment and can cost between $10,000 and $20,000.
“I don’t know of a single private health-care plan that would cover this type of procedure, and we certainly can’t expect taxpayers to pay for it for people who have committed crimes,” Suder said. The bill is supported by a decision by the United States 7th Circuit Court of Appeals stating that prisoners do not have a right to expensive medical procedures, according to Suder.
There are some, however, that feel the bill will infringe on the rights of prisoners with gender identity disorder.
“It’s atrocious,” said University of Wisconsin senior Kate Kullberg, who will graduate with a minor in LGBT studies. “What is so horrible about helping someone be the person they were meant to be?”
“Prison funding is already going toward things like weight-lifting facilities, computers and cable TV. It seems to me that a person with a gender-identity crisis should be able to have their treatments funded,” said Kullberg.
Anonymous (February 11, 2005 @ 2:17am):
i once knew this guy named jason g. who wanted a sex change opperation so he commited armed robbery to go to jail to get the procedure done. turns out, the state doesn't want to fund this sort of thing any more. who knew? now jason is stuck doing ten to twenty, still has all his parts in tact and no hormone treatments to be had. god works in mysterious ways my friends. mysterious ways...
Anonymous (February 11, 2005 @ 10:22am):
Kate Kullberg should send in a check to cover the cost if she feels so generous. Or is she only generous with other peoples' money?
Anonymous (February 11, 2005 @ 3:28pm):
By the way, does anyone know what the procedure is called when a woman has a sex change to become a man? An adadictomy! Bah dah bum...
Anonymous (February 11, 2005 @ 4:27pm):
Hmmm... Do we live in a red state or a blue state? Maybe we live in a purple state... brought on by too much drinking.
Remember... Madison is a community unto itself. The rest of the state is red-neck and Bush-oriented. Just remember that when you go out seeking employment. You could end up teaching or being a doctor at the end of the world... or was that the armpit of the world?
Good story---
Anonymous (February 11, 2005 @ 5:12pm):
Hmmmm...the appearence of the phrase "Bush"-oriented in a discussion about sex-changes.
"Warden, I need hormone therapy because I have always known that I was Bush-oriented."
Patrick Klemz (February 14, 2005 @ 2:19am):
"The rest of the state is red-neck."
While much of the state is rural, not all of rural Wisconsin is "red-neck." Furthermore, let's not forget about that little settlement to the east.
It would take 1,500 "red-neck" towns with a population of 1,000 (on average) just to counter the Cream City and its 'burbs.
Also, let's not forget Eau Claire, Oshkosh, Beloit, Green Bay, Sheboygan, Fond du Lac and all the other small cities which, while not quite as cosmopolitan as Madison or Milwaukee, can hardly be classified as rural at all.
Please, think before you post and unfairly judge the people of this fine state -- people who pay the taxes that help put you through college.
