This is an issue that concerns so, so many people in Australia. From transgender individuals, to non-binary people, to genderfluid and genderqueer people, people that identify with xenogenders, to demiboys, demigirls, and everyone that falls under the trans and nonbinary umbrella. Trans and nonbinary people make up about 4% of Australia's population. Yet the Australian government doesn't seem to care about us 171,200 individuals. Nevertheless, we are all people that deserve access to gender affirming healthcare.

The changes I am asking for are:

1. For gender affirming surgery to no longer be considered 'cosmetic' in Australia. It is truly disgusting that something that has been deemed LIFE-SAVING by many, many researchers is diminished to cosmetic in our nation. It is not cosmetic surgery, it is not to make us look prettier and more attractive, it exists for us to feel comfortable in our bodies. To stop feelings of gender dysphoria. To prevent trans and nonbinary people from committing suicide or self harming because of how distressed their body makes them. It is  abhorrent that our government considers this vital care 'cosmetic', and that must urgently be changed.
2. There needs to be more funding from the government for gender-affirming care, and more costs should be covered by Medicare. Did you know that many people WITH insurance end up paying $80,000 for their surgeries? Vaginoplasty often costs between $8000 and $30,000 dollars in Australia, and phalloplasty between $50,000 and $80,000. Majority of this is paid out-of-pocket, because costs will only be covered by Medicare if deemed 'medically necessary' (which is bullshit, all gender-affirming surgery is medically necessary), and these surgeries are often performed in private hospitals, because it is incredibly hard to get into a public hospital and access this kind of care. Additionally, facial feminisation surgery can cost between $20,000 and $100,000, majority of this paid out-of-pocket, which is absurd. Gender diverse Australians should not be expected to pay this much for their life-saving medical care. I'm calling for more funding and subsidisation for gender affirming care, now. 
   
   
3. Gender-affirming care and gender dysphoria should be implemented in the curriculum for anyone studying medicine and planning to become a doctor, nurse, general practitioner or surgeon in Australia. The amount of medical transphobia and exorsexism that occurs every day in this country is NOT okay. I have seen with my own eyes, thousands of gender diverse Australians reporting the horrible experiences they've had with doctors discriminating against them, failing to understand and listen to them, and denying them access to gender affirming care for invalid reasons. This has to stop. Gender diverse Australians need to be included in the medical curriculum. The future is now, and we are apart of it. We deserve medical care as much as anyone else, so we should be included in conversations about bodily autonomy, surgery, what we need, and what's right for us. Just like how every doctor, woman or not, is taught about menstruation and the female reproductive system, every doctor, queer or not, should learn about gender dysphoria, gender reassignment surgery, puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy, and the correlation with medical transition and improved mental health. 
   
   
4. Gender and sexuality should be taught in schools as apart of Health and Sex Education curriculum. It is unfair that gender diverse and queer individuals are always left out of these conversations. Teaching young people that gender isn't always male or female and that sex isn't always penis in vagina is not 'forcing' queerness and transness on them, it's educating them about perfectly normal topics. I am tired of educators being afraid to discuss homosexuality and gender diversity. No one is too young to learn about the beauty of being human and getting to love whoever you want, and be whoever you are. I believe that the spectrum of gender should be discussed in this curriculum, that gender isn't always binary, your identity can shift and change and you do not have to identify with what was assigned to you at birth. Additionally, there is a history of intersex individuals being left out of gender and sexuality conversations, which must end now. When we talk about body parts and the way bodies develop in Sex Education, we must include intersex people as well. People who have female chromosomes and ovaries, but have penises or otherwise male external genitalia, vice versa, the presence of both ovarian and testicular tissue in the gonads, those with XY chromosomes but a body that resists androgens, resulting in a female appearance, and many more intersex variations must be included in these conversations. People's chromosomes, gender identities, and body parts don't always line up, and they shouldn't be expected to. And teaching young people about this gives them crucial knowledge for understanding other people, how bodies can develop, and prevents them from being prejudiced or discriminatory. It is also exceedingly unfair that it is often only penis-in-vagina penetrative sex that is displayed and discussed when Sex Education is taught. Sex can look many different ways, and can mean many different things. Young people have a right to know this, and it is important for them to be educated, especially when they are teenagers that may engage in sexual activity. It is unfair to leave queer people in the dark and unsure on how to perform and consent to the sexual activity they are interested in, and it is unfair to leave everyone else in the dark when it comes to non penetrative sex, like touching eachother's private parts, giving someone 'head', etc etc. We have a right to know about all kinds of sex, not just the society-approved penis in vagina sex.
   
   
5. More doctors, nurses, and surgeons should be trained and recruited in performing gender affirming surgery. Currently, only five surgeons in the whole of Australia perform gender affirming surgery. Only two surgeons perform phalloplasty. This is ridiculous and disgusting. Out of the 8,200 of surgeons in our nation, only five of them are trained in performing this life-saving care. I'm calling for anyone interested in helping trans and nonbinary Australians get the care they need to come forward and advocate for training and information about this healthcare, because we need more of you. If more surgeons could learn about this surgery and how important it is, and had the option and ability to get trained in performing it, we could make Australia a better and safer place for gender diverse individuals. We shouldn't have to upend our bank accounts and risk our safety in private hospitals to access life-saving care. If this care was implemented in the curriculum, discussed, and people were trained in performing it, it could save lives.
   
   
6. A policy exists in Australia, that you must be diagnosed with gender dysphoria in order to access hormone replacement therapy. This is bullshit. 37% of trans and nonbinary people do not experience dysphoria about the way their chest looks, and 11% of trans and nonbinary people do not experience dysphoria about their genitals. Denying someone that doesn't have a certain symptom life-saving care is diabolical. That's like telling someone who's cold they can't have a jumper because it's not certain that they'll die without one, or not giving a person in pain painkillers because 'they'll survive'. If a trans or nonbinary individual wants to access gender affirming healthcare, they should be allowed to. A trans/nonbinary person is still valid even if they don't experience dysphoria, and to deny that and deny access to healthcare because of that is medically transphobic. I demand that this policy be abolished. 
   
   
7. Hormone replacement therapy should be accessible with the consent of one parent or guardian with one follow-up appointment after the patient has reached the age of 12. Currently, if any of your parents or doctors dispute to your transition, you may have to go to court, and it can be a lengthy, difficult process that often ends unresolved with the patient not being able to access their healthcare. I believe that this process should be easier - patients above the age of 12 seeking gender affirming care should be able to go to their general practitioner, discuss getting puberty blockers or testosterone/estrogen, learn about the effects and side effects of the treatment, get consent from one parent or guardian, and then be able to begin the treatment. It is so frustrating that thousands of minors are turned away by the health and legal systems just because they are under the age of 18. Us queer minors are valid too, and we often know exactly what care we are seeking, and how much we need it. Being trans is not a 'trend' that we're following it, it's a legitimate gender identity and we have the right to seek affirming healthcare. The percentage of people that detransition is below 1%, and hormone replacement therapy can be stopped and reversed by treating the patient with the opposite hormone. Therefore, there shouldn't be any fear-mongering that this is a life changing treatment, because there are options to undo it if your gender identity changes. The stigma around gender affirming healthcare often comes from fear-mongering and ageism, the incorrect idea that minors are followers that are being trans to be popular, and aren't smart enough to have bodily autonomy. Under the age of 18, we have a right to access hormone replacement therapy, but it needs to be made easier. 
   
   
8. General Practitioners should be able to prescribe hormone replacement therapy. It is not harmful, it's beneficial, and potentially life-saving. If a patient confides in their General Practitioner that they are seeking HRT, the GP should be able to prescribe it to them. There is too much stigma around hormone replacement therapy, especially in medical areas, and this results in thousands of gender diverse people not being able to access this healthcare. It's unfair, and we have the right to access the care we need.
   
   
9. Gender affirming healthcare should be covered by Medicare for gender diverse people in Australia on temporary visas. Currently, people on temporary visas in Australia don't have access to Medicare at all, but they should. Especially for if they're trying to access gender affirming healthcare, seeing as it is life-saving and can be incredibly expensive.
   
   
10. New South Wales and Queensland have banned accessing hormone replacement therapy for anyone under 18. This is appalling. As I have said so many times in this petition, gender affirming healthcare is life-saving. It can act as suicide prevention for some people, and to restrict access for young people, whose leading cause of death is suicide, is a horrible decision. This decision was clearly influenced by transphobia, which should not be tolerated by the government. I certainly don't tolerate it. I'm calling for these states to unban life-saving healthcare for gender diverse individuals!

My name is Finch. I am a young genderfluid Australian, and I believe in standing up for trans rights.