A federal court judge has ordered state officials to provide a sex-reassignment surgery for a transsexual prison inmate, convicted of murdering his wife, after finding that the treatment is the only adequate care for his serious mental illness, gender identity disorder.
US District Court Chief Judge Mark Wolf also noted that the treatment for Michelle Kosilek had been prescribed by Department of Correction doctors, and that the only justifications for denying the treatment were based on public opinion.
“This fact that sex reassignment surgery is for some people medically necessary has recently become more widely recognized,” Wolf wrote in a landmark, 129-page ruling issued today.
Kosilek first sued the Department of Correction in 2000, arguing that its refusal to pay for a sex-change violates her Eighth Amendment right against cruel and unusual punishment.
The department has consistently opposed Kosilek’s request.
Today, Department of Correction spokeswoman Diane Wiffin said the state agency has received Wolf’s ruling.
“We are reviewing the decision and exploring our appellate options,’’ Wiffin said.
http://www.boston.com/metrodesk/2012...V5N/story.html