Articles- Collected Articles For The Transgender Community

Wafaa M. El-Sadr, M.D., M.P.H., Kenneth H. Mayer, M.D., and Sally L. Hodder, M.D.
Published at www.nejm.org February 10, 2010 (10.1056/NEJMp1000069)

Over the past decade, limited attention has been paid to the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic in the United States. The global epidemic — particularly the epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa, where approximately two thirds of the world’s population living with AIDS resides — has rightfully received most of the focus. Meanwhile, however, the prevalence of HIV infection within some U.S. populations now rivals that in some sub-Saharan African countries (see graph). For example, more than 1 in 30 adults in Washington, D.C., are HIV-infected — a prevalence higher than that reported in Ethiopia, Nigeria, or Rwanda.1 Certain U.S. subpopulations are particularly hard hit. In New York City, 1 in 40 blacks, 1 in 10 men who have sex with men, and 1 in 8 injection-drug users are HIV-infected, as are 1 in 16 black men in Washington, D.C.2 In several U.S. urban areas, the HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men is as high as 30%3 — as compared with a general-population prevalence of 7.8% in Kenya and 16.9% in South Africa.

HIV Prevalence in Adults from Selected Countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and Subpopulations in the United States.
Data are from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the District of Columbia Department of Health, the New Jersey Department of Health, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). MSM denotes men who have sex with men.
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The Transgender Law Center (TLC) congratulates Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) for their landmark victory in U.S. Tax Court. In Rhiannon O’Donnabhain v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, the Court found that transgender tax payers may deduct the cost of some transition-related surgeries because such procedures are not “cosmetic surgery” as defined by the Internal Revenue Code.

Ms. O’Donnabhain, a Boston native, Coast Guard veteran, and parent began transitioning in the mid 1990s and underwent sex reassignment surgeries in 2001. In April 2002, Ms. O’Donnabhain deducted approximately $25,000 in surgical expenses from her 2001 tax return. She was audited by the I.R.S. six months later. After an initial indication by an Appeals Officer to allow the deduction, the I.R.S. Chief Counsel denied the deduction in 2005. A trial was held in U.S. Tax Court in August 2007. The case had been pending before the court for more than two years before the favorable decision was announced. The decision has broad implications for transgender tax payers in California and throughout the U.S.
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