New Bill Raises Stakes for Winning Gender-Affirming CampusCare

June 1st, 2025

This week, the US House of Representatives voted in favor of H.R. 1, also dubbed Trump's "One Big Beautiful Bill." The bill contains several provisions that, if passed onto and voted favorably upon by the US Senate, would affect the lives of millions residing in the United States. This includes new restrictions for welfare programs such as SNAP and Medicaid, in particular introducing new work requirements for eligibility, and a ban on gender-affirming care for those receiving Medicaid benefits.

Currently, around 1 in 5 transgender Americans (276,000 people) receive Medicaid benefits, which they use to cover the often prohibitive costs of hormone replacement therapy, gender-affirming surgery, and other aspects of transition-related care. Expanding on earlier edicts from the Trump administration to limit and ban care for transgender youth, if put into law, these new restrictions could have devastating consequences for thousands of trans people across the country. 

Here at UIC, though many of our workers receive health insurance coverage not through Medicaid but through CampusCare, we also know several graduate workers don't use the university-specific student health benefit (which is not the same as insurance), instead opting for other plans. In the survey conducted by the Bargaining Committee in Fall 2024, about a quarter of grad workers surveyed reported they use insurance other than CampusCare. Many of our workers' children, spouses, or other dependents are on other healthcare plans, including Medicaid, to meet their healthcare needs. 

Further, as we've already seen, these measures only escalate over time, setting a dangerous precedent for further restrictions on gender-affirming healthcare. The U of I system has already demonstrated that without direct pressure, they will fold under the pressure of the Trump administration when it comes to gender-affirming healthcare.

This is why GEO is devoted to fighting for a healthcare plan that works for all of us, especially one that guarantees gender-affirming care to grad workers and their families at UIC. We deserve real health insurance, not fragilely subject to federal meddling or at the mercy of UI Health’s shaky commitments, that covers hormone replacement therapy, surgery, laser hair removal, talk therapy, voice training, and more for all transgender and nonbinary workers and their families.

If you're interested in joining GEO in the fight for a healthcare plan we can depend on, attend our weekly Bargaining Committee meetings on Mondays at 5pm, and stay plugged in to attend our future bargaining sessions!