North Texas TRANSportation Network launches to help transgender minors receive healthcare
FORT WORTH (CBSNewsTexas.com) – There's a new program called the North Texas TRANSportation Network to help families with trans or gender diverse children receive the care they need.
This comes after the Texas Legislature passed SB 14 this session, preventing transgender minors, younger than 18 years old, from accessing hormone therapies, and puberty blockers. Under this law, medical providers could be punished if caught providing this type of care.
The non-profit, NTTN, was created by Galileo Church in Fort Worth in August with the goal to raise money to help fund travel for families to drive or fly to whichever doctor the families prefer out of state.
The only qualifications are the families must be in the 19 county North Texas region and the children must be trans or gender diverse.
"We started dreaming about what it would look like to put together a system where we could simple connect donors with families who need some financial help to seek that healthcare out of state, it's expensive to go get it," said Galileo Church Rev. Dr. Katie Hays.
Executive Director of NTTN, Cynthia Daniels said she was devastated when SB 14 passed and this new initiative is about being a good neighbor—and loving people, "I'm a mother, I have three kids so and I have always been able to get the healthcare for my kids that they desperately needed. So, to me it's just being a good neighbor to a group of people who have been selected to not be able to receive their healthcare and to me that's devastating."
The feeling from families, according to Rev. Hays, are they feel alone, even more so after lawmakers enacted this ban, "They're hurt by the rejection of the neighbors, they really feel alone and like Texas does not have their back."
So far, NTTN has received two applications and have enough funds to help one family.
One issue they are seeing is it's hard to find insurance to cover out of state healthcare, so it can be costly.
The non-profit said 100% of the donations go right to the families.
If you want to donate, volunteer or learn more about NTTN, click here.
Galileo Church said they have a mission to do justice for LGBTQ+ humans and support the people who love them. To learn more, click here.
