P.E.I. man hopeful province will soon cover transgender reconstructive surgery

A Charlottetown man who's been fighting to have transgender reconstructive surgery paid by the province is optimistic aftera meeting last week with P.E.I. Health Minister Robert Mitchell.

Three years ago, when Jay Gallant began transitioning from female to male, he learned that the province only covers the removal of breasts, and not the surgery to construct a male chest.

Gallant opted for the mastectomies, which he said left him disfigured. It's now too late for Gallant to have reconstructive surgery it had to be done at the time of the mastectomies but he's been lobbying government to cover it in the future for other Islanders transitioning from one gender to another.

He said the meeting with Mitchell, which included members of the PEERS Alliance, gave him hope.

"The minister explained that it is something that needs to be covered," Gallant said. "He said that actually, they were planning on, within the next two to four months, doing some kind of announcement about expanding coverage of surgical options for transgender individuals."

P.E.I. is the only province that doesn't cover any reconstructive surgeries. In an email statement to CBC News, the health department said it's in the process ofdefiningwhich surgeries will becovered.

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