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Transgender Healthcare
November 18 , 2025
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- Tamil Nadu was the first state in India to introduce a transgender welfare policy and established the Transgender Welfare Board on April 15, 2008.
- The Board is headed by the Minister of Social Welfare.
- April 15 is now observed as Transgender Welfare Day in the state.
- The Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai began offering gender-affirming surgeries in 2008, supported by the Transgender Welfare Board.
- This initiative preceded the 2019 Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, which mandated at least one government hospital per state to provide such services.
- In 2018, the National Health Mission, Tamil Nadu, established Gender Guidance Clinics (GGCs) to provide multidisciplinary care under one roof.
- By 2025, eight districts will host GGCs, offering free gender-affirming procedures and comprehensive transgender healthcare.
- In 2022, gender-affirming surgeries and hormonal therapy were integrated into the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS-PMJAY).
- Services previously funded through hospital budgets are now covered under a five-year policy (2022–2027) with United India Insurance Company.
- This makes India the first South Asian country to include transgender care in universal health coverage.
- To enhance accessibility, the state removed the ₹72,000 annual income cap for CMCHIS-PMJAY enrollment.
- The state also waived the requirement for a ration card bearing the transgender person’s name.
- The policy recognizes that barriers to healthcare extend beyond income, including stigma, discrimination, and family rejection.
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