SURGE IN SEX SWAPS
731 in city ID as new gender
MORE THAN 700 New Yorkers have changed the gender listed on their birth certificate since the city made it easier for transgender people to make the switch two years ago, according to stats released by the Health Department on Thursday.
There have been 731 gender changes since January 2015, when the new rules went into effect. Before that, the average was just 20 a year.
The new rules let New Yorkers change their official gender if a doctor or other licensed health care provider certifies that the gender listed on a patient’s birth certificate doesn’t match the gender they identify with. Previously, the city required a sex change surgery and a legal name change.
Some 55% of applicants have changed their gender from male to female, while 45% have switched from female to male, according to the new data.
The youngest gender change applicant was 5, while the oldest was 76.
Kids can get their gender changed with parental consent in addition to the medical signoff, and 41 of the gender changes were for residents under 18.
The Health Department also changed one person’s birth certificate to list their gender as “intersex,” the first time that designation has been used on a birth certificate anywhere in the country.
“As jurisdictions around the country continue to adopt policies of discrimination against transgender people, it is crucial for this city to reaffirm its commitment to equality and health equity,” said Health Commissioner Mary Bassett. “We will continue to work with the community to recognize and affirm transgender lives, improve our services, reduce stigma and promote the health of all transgender New Yorkers.”
Gretchen Van Wye, head of the Bureau of Vital Statistics, said prior to the new policy, people with a mismatched gender on their birth certificate could face job discrimination and difficulty getting other identification documents.
“If you’re presenting as a male, but your birth certificate says female, that’s going to create an opportunity for discrimination,” she said.
In the past, the small number of gender changes that did happen were overwhelmingly male to female, in part because surgery is more complicated for people making the transitionthe other way.
As for the youngsters, Van Wye said, “A lot of people know from a very young age that they identify with a sex different from the one that they are labeled. This is parents enabling their child to grow up in the gender identity that they feel that they are.”