The City of Rochester is adding transgender healthcare benefits for employees and their family members who are enrolled in the city's 'enhanced' medical plan .
The announcement was made by Mayor Lovely Warren and Councilman Matt Haag at the Empire State Pride Agenda Spring Dinner.
The new coverage was approved by the city's labor management healthcare committee in April. The new coverage will pay for services related to gender reassignment surgery including medical and psychological counseling, hormone therapy and cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries.
The new coverage will take effect on January 1, 2015.
Haag is spearheading a plan to raise the city's Municipal Equality Index, which is a measure of the city's LGBT policies and how inclusive each city is with members of LGBT communities. That index is released annually by a national organization, the Human Rights Campaign.
