DOJ Asking Taxpayers to Fund Sex Reassignment Surgery for Inmates

The Federal Bureau of Prisons is looking for a provider to perform reassignment surgeries.

QUICK FACTS:
  • The Federal Medical Center (FMC) Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas is looking for a provider to operate on inmates requesting gender reassignment surgery. 
  • The FMC is part of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP), which is a division of the Department of Justice (DOJ) that is planning to allow inmates of all security levels to have the surgery.
  • A provider that will meet the prison’s needs will supply inpatient and outpatient services along with reassignment surgery.
  • Included in the list of services the prison system is looking to obtain are breast augmentation with implants, penile inversion vasectomy, vaginoplasty with a native tissue graft, and removal of genital hair on the axillae.
  • These procedures would all be part of the male-to-female Gender Reconfirmation Surgery (GRS) for transgender-identifying inmates.
REQUEST FROM PRISON FOR FUNDING:
  • The solicitation of funds was launched on Thursday and has a deadline of Oct. 10. “As an agency under the Executive Branch of the United States Government, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) receives an annual appropriation of funds to accomplish its assigned mission,” according to the solicitation. “The public trust demands that this annual appropriation be prudently managed. Thus, dollars spent to maintain the health of the inmate population, to include Gender Reassignment Surgery (GRS), must reflect the agency’s best efforts to obtain cost-effective health care consistent with community standards.”
  • In the synopsis, the prison system stated that “the Government contemplates awarding a firm fixed-price contract via purchase order resulting from this solicitation. The FBOP desires a single award to the quoter who can provide the best value, considering the diversity of available services and price, among other criteria specified in the solicitation.”
  • “Therefore, the Government may award any or all line items, may withhold award of any or all line items, or may award to a quoter who quotes less than the full complement of services contained in this solicitation. Quoters are encouraged to submit comprehensive proposals committing to provide all outputs listed in the solicitation,” the document went on.
BACKGROUND:
  • The prevalence of transgender surgery has increased, and with it California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has welcomed those surgeries into his state, signing SB 107 into law, allowing protection for families who have obtained the surgery for their children.
  • As American Faith previously reported, the law bans healthcare providers and related professionals from releasing medical information in response to criminal or civil actions to officials from states that don’t allow for similar treatments.
  • Officials from any state that doesn’t allow transgender-affirming surgery and treatments for minors would be unable to obtain records for citizens who travel to California for the procedure.
  • The Los Angeles Times noted that whether SB 107 itself will be upheld in a higher court is “in question because of federal requirements that states must recognize out-of-state laws when residents travel.”

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