The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in the U.S. have decided to remove questions related to sexual orientation and gender identity from certain enrollment application forms. This decision was made in response to President Trump’s executive order which called for federal agencies to eliminate references to “gender ideology.”
These questions were previously included on forms used by Medicare beneficiaries to enroll in Medicare Advantage plans, prescription drug plans, and a specific program for low-income individuals. While the questions were optional and aimed at providing more information about the demographics of enrollees, they are now being removed from the forms.
In a memo released in July, Medicare officials stated that collecting data on sexual orientation and gender identity would help address health inequities and disparities within the healthcare system. By understanding the diversity of the Medicare population, including differences in health needs and experiences, they believed it would advance equity mandates and improve healthcare outcomes.
This change in enrollment forms comes at a time when other federal agencies, like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), have also removed information related to sexual orientation and gender identity from their websites and databases. Following the removal of this information, top CDC advisers urged the Trump administration to provide an explanation for the abrupt action.
Recently, a judge ordered all government agencies to restore websites that were taken down due to President Trump’s “gender ideology” order. The removal of questions on sexual orientation and gender identity from Medicare enrollment forms is part of a larger trend within the federal government to scrub references to gender ideology, raising concerns about the impact on data collection and healthcare equity initiatives.
