A recent UCLA’s Williams Institute study shows that Texas has the second-largest transgender population in the country.
Just over 125,000 Texans identify as transgender.
Right now, there is no Central Texas health care clinic tailored to their needs, but that’s about to change. On Thursday, a free transgender clinic will open to the public.
Texas Health Action’s Kind Clinic’s newest extension is filling a need that is great here in our community.
The gender care clinic will be the first of its kind in Central Texas.
“Right now, there is no specific clinic where people who are seeking help for gender issues can feel at home,” Texas Health Action’s medical director Dr. Cynthia Brinson said.
Dr. Brinson is one of the doctors who will be working with the transgender patients.
She said these patients often don’t feel welcome in the average medical community and sometimes look for medical care elsewhere.
“They’ll get them from their best friend or they are black marketed from Mexico,” Texas Health Action’s executive director Joe McAdams said. “Come Thursday, we’ll be able to take care of folks primary needs and make them feel better about themselves. We’ll keep them engaged in a medical model that makes sense to them.”
McAdams said some of the services that will be offered at the gender care clinic will gender affirming care such as feminizing hormones, masculizing hormones, STD screenings and HIV treatment and prevention drugs.
The Center Disease Control and Prevention estimates one in four transgender women are living with HIV.
On top of medical care, the gender care clinic is looking to add more services.
“In the future, we’d also be able to offer some counseling services,” Dr. Brinson said. “This will be a wonderful opportunity to really find out how patients in Austin will seek out are care and we’ll get a better idea of how many people need this care.”
All of this will come at no cost to the patient. Any expenses not picked up by insurance will be covered by Texas Health Action.
You can learn more here.
