Hi Everyone,

You know that we want you to be healthy and safe.  This has become a very challenging time for almost all Americans and especially for the LGBTQ+ community.  While we work to meet these challenges and support each other it is import to make sure we take care of our own health.  We are updating our #WellnessWednesday posts to document sites that are still compassionately offering gender-affirming health services.  We are doing this work by states in alphabetical order.  This week we are summarizing the legal picture and health care resources for Pennsylvania.  Many resources are, to their credit, still creating  comfortable places for transitional medicine as well as routine proactive health maintenance and interventionary health care.  We will try to highlight what is offered in each case.

If you still can’t find the health care you need, drop us a note on FB (B.UR.SLF LLC), instagram/ twitter @burslfllc or email burslfllc@gmail.com and we will see what we can do to help.

 

Pennsylvania

Gender affirming care is legal in Pennsylvania. The state has protections for transgender individuals, including access to healthcare consistent with their gender identity.   Some health care providers have decided to limit gender-affirming health care to >19 although there is no law in Pennsylvania to prohibit care for < 19 so please check ahead of time.  

Allentown Women’s Center (AWC) (Website –Gender-Affirming Services, FB –  Allentown Women’s Center, IG – @allentownwomenscenter)

At Allentown Women’s Center gender-affirming service includes  gender-affirming hormone therapy, assistance with legal documentation changes, upper and lower body exams and transition care as well as annual physicals including breast exam and pap smear, birth control, and laser hair removal.

Payment Options:  AWC accepts insurance and offers limited financial assistance to those who qualify, find additional information at payment options.

AWC is in Bethlehem.

Age limits for services are not obvious, these services appear to be oriented to adults, but call the provider to learn age limits for services. 

 

Alder Health Services (Website –Gender-Affirming Health Care, FB –Alder Health , IG – @alderhealthservices)

The gender-affirming medical services include gender-affirming hormone therapy, primary care and sexual health, including chest/breast and pelvic health, HIV/STI treatments and testing including PrEP, family planning, and even a food pantry and clothing market.

Payment Options: Insurance is accepted and a sliding pay scale is available check the FAQs on the Gender-Affirming Health Care Page.

Trans Health at Alder Health Services is in Harrisburg.

The gender-affirming care is for adults and children who have a letter from a licensed therapist and consent from one guardian (see FAQs in Gender-Affirming Health Care. 

 

Allegheny Health Network (AHN) (Website – LGBTQ+ Health Services, FB – Allegheny Health Network , IG – @ahntoday)

Transgender Health Care @ AHN offers medical transition and the assumption is that this is gender-affirming hormone therapy and  surgeries  including breast reduction/ augmentation, chest reconstruction/ masculizaiton, orchiectomy, and hysterectomy.

Payment Options: AHN accepts insurance and works with patients to help them meet financial obligations and they will help you learn if you qualify for financial assistance.  

AHN has several locations click the link for more information.

Age limits for services are not obvious, these appear to be oriented adults, but call the provider with questions on age limitations for services.

 

Main Line Health (Website – Jefferson Pride Care, FB – Jefferson Health , IG – @jeffersonhealth)

Jefferson Health offers gender-affirming hormone therapy and  surgeries  and surgical care including top surgeries along with sexual health, HIV care/PrEP/PEP care, affirming OB-gyn services, including reproductive services and voice therapy

Payment Options: Check with individual providers.    

Jefferson Health has several locations click the link for more information.

Check with individual providers for age limitations for services.

 

Main Line Health (Website – Gender Care Program, FB – Main Line Health , IG – @mainlinehealth)

Main Line Health offers gender-affirming hormone therapy and  surgeries  and surgical care including chest surgery, vaginal construction, vaginoplasty/ masculizaiton, orchiectomy, voice pitch therapy and other services.

Payment Options: Main Line Health accepts insurance accepted and financial assistance.  

Main Line Health has several locations click the link for more information.

Age limits for services are not obvious, these appear to be oriented adults, but call the provider with questions on age limitations for services.

 

Mazzoni Center (Website – Primary Care Services, FB – Mazzoni Center, IG – @mazzonicenter)

Mazzoni Center should be providing gender-affirming care such as gender-affirming hormone therapy, but these are no longer listed on their website so call and confirm.  Mazzoni also offers primary medical care  HIV medical care, on-site pharmacy, breast/chest health care, GYN services/ cervical cancer screenings (where links are provided, click for more details)

Mazzoni Center  has a specialty program for children and youth, the Pediatric & Adolescent Comprehensive Transgender Services (PACTS).  PACTS is a collaborate care team that draws on the input and expertise of multiple departments within Mazzoni Center – medical providers, social workers, therapists, and legal staff to provide the best possible care for clients.  We use an informed consent model, assessing current knowledge and educating the family about treatment options and other medical issues surrounding the social and medical transition process.

Here is a comprehensive list of Mazzoni Center’s Health Care and Prevention Care services..

Payment Options: Mazzoni Center accepts insurance programs and offers low cost co-pays on a sliding scale, click the link insurance and payment for more information. 

The Mazzoni Center has two locations in Philadelphia.

The Mazzoni Center has services for patients of all ages. 

 

University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UMPC) (Website – LGBTQ+ Clinical Services, FB – UMPC, IG – @umpchealthbeat)

UMPC LGBTQ+ clinic offers gender-affirming hormone therapy and surgery for patients 18+.  The LBGTQ+ clinic also offers Ob-gyn care, sexual wellness care, testing and treating STIs and HIV including PrEP.  Gender-affirming voice therapy fertility and reproductive care and other services.

Payment Options:  UMPC accepts many insurance programs and also has price transparency and financial assistance, click the link Pay My Bill for more information.

Check the LGBTQ+ Affirming Experts website for locations of providers in the Pittsburgh area.

Check with providers for age limitations on services.

 

Plume Clinic 100% On-Line Gender-Affirming and Trans-Focused Healthcare  (Website – Plume, FB – Plume Clinic, IG – @plume_clinic)

Plume Clinic offers 100% on-line gender-affirming and trans-focused care for your full authentic self.  They offer a wide range of services including gender-affirming hormone therapy transition support, sexual health services, mental health and everyday wellness.

Click the Pennsylvania link for Plume Clinic online services.

Payment Options:  Plume accepts self-pay in Alaska for their monthly membership plans.

Patients must be 19 years of age to get services from Plume

 

True U Clinic (Website – Gender-Affirming Care, FB –True U Clinic, IG – True U Clinic).

True U Clinic offers gender-affirming hormone therapy, PrEP and STD testing and treatment.

Payment Options: click the pricing link for information.

True U Clinic is a digital service that partners with local labs for testing.

Services are for 18+ adults.

 

UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh  (Website – UMPC Children’s, FB – UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, IG – @chlidrenspgh)

Unfortunately, UMPC Children’s recently ENDED gender-affirming care including hormone therapy and puberty suppression for patients less than 18 years old.

Payment Options: Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh accepts insurance and offers financial assistance click the link patient billing for more information.

UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh is in Pittsburgh.

Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh serves children and youth up to age 26.

 

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOPs) (Website – Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic, FB – Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOPs), IG – @childrensphila)

The multi-disciplinary team at The Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic (GSD Clinic) offers psychosocial and medical support for gender variant, gender expansive and transgender children and youth up to age 21 and their families.  The Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic will evaluate pediatric patients for puberty suppression and adolescent patients for gender-affirming medical treatment which we assume is gender-affirming hormone therapy.  The cline also provides referrals for gender-affirming surgeries.  The clinic’s website has a lot of great resources like insurance advocacy, a lending library for books and videos, educations videos and materials on the website, help with advocacy in schools and educational settings and recommendations for local LGBTQ friendly salons and stylists.

They have a great website and organization, check it out.

Payment Options:  CHOPs accepts many insurance programs and also has financial assistance, click the link billing and insurance for more information.

The Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic at CHOPs is located in Philadelphia.

The Gender and Sexuality Development Clinic at CHOPS is for children up to 21 years old and their families.

 

Penn Medicine (Website – LGBTQ Health FB – Penn Medicine, IG – @pennmedicine

Penn Medicine LGBTQ Health offers gender-affirming hormone therapy and surgeries including body contouring.  Also affirming primary care, PRIDE dermatology, infectious diseases, sexual health including OB-gyn, fertility care, STI and HIV testing and treatment, voice gender reassignment surgery as well as many other services designed specifically to meet the needs of LGBTQ and gender variant individuals.

Payment options will depend on resources identified for the needed services.  Penn Medicine itself does have a financial assistance program.

Penn Medicine has several locations in Philadelphia and a couple of resources outside of Philadelphia and in New Jersey.

Check with the provider for age limitations on services, some services are not available to patients < 19.

 

University of Pennsylvania Student Health Service (Website – Transgender Health and Wellness at Penn (PW lock to your student ID), FB – University of Pennsylvania , IG – @UnivPennsylvania)

The Transgender Health program at Student Health Services at the University of Pennsylvania has offered multidisciplinary services including gender-affirming hormone therapy, primary care, referrals for gender-affirming services, gynecologic care, and wellness services.  Students can also access gender-affirming care at University of Penn Medicine (above).  Contact the Student Health Services to confirm available services since it is password locked for students.

Payment Options:  Some gender-affirming services are covered by student health insurance.

Student health services for University of Pennsylvania is located in Philadelphia and also offers telemedicine.

Transgender Health at student health services at University of  Pennsylvania is for students of University of Pennsylvania.

 

Temple Health and Temple University (Website – Gender-Affirmation Hormone Therapy, FB – Temple Health , IG – @templehealth)

Temple Health offers gender affirming therapy.  Temple University has Trans Health Services at the Wellness Resource Center.  The services available at Trans Health Services for students at Temple University are not obvious, but it appears that Trans Health Services is working closely with Mazzoni Center (above) which has very comprehensive services for the transgender, gender nonconforming, nonbinary and LBTQIA communities.

Payment Options: Temple Health accepts insurance, will help patients get ACA market insurance and has options for financial assistance, but it is not clear which of these apply to students, call the provider for more information.

Gender-affirmation hormone therapy is located in Philadelphia.  Trans Health Services at the Wellness Resource Center is located in the Student Center.

Age limits for services at Transgender Health are not obvious, these appear to be oriented adults, but call with any questions on age limitations.  Trans Health Services at the Wellness Resource Center in the Student Center of Temple University is for students of Temple University.  

 

Planned Parenthood of Pennsylvania is part of (3) organizations, Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania (PPSP), Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania (PPWP) and Planned Parenthood of Keystone (PPKeystone) and these organizations have (23) Health Centers (Websites –PPSP , PPWP and PPKeystone, FB – Planned Parenthood SEPA, PPWP, and PPKeystone, IG – @plannedparenthood, #plannedparenthoodofwesternpennsylvania and @ppkeystone)

Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania (PPSP) has (8) health centers  in Coatsville, Philadelphia City Center, Castor Ave. Northeast Philadelphia, Media, Norristown, Pottstown, Upper Darby and West Chester, click the link for locations and there is also telehealth.  Patients seeking Gender Affirming Care, including gender-affirming hormone therapy, are specifically directed to (3) of the locations, Philadelphia City Center, Pottstown and West Chester.  All of the PPSP health centers offer many important services, click the link and see the notes below.

Planned Parenthood of Western Pennsylvania (PPWP) has (6) health centers  in Bridgeville, Greensburg, Johnstown, Mood Township, Pittsburgh and Somerset, click the link for locations. and telehealth is also available.  PPWP offers Gender Affirming Care including gender-affirming hormone  therapy and other important services, click the links and see the notes below.

Planned Parenthood of Keystone has (9) health centers in Allentown, Bensalem, Harrisburg, Lancaster (coming soon, has telehealth now), Quakertown, Susie & John Stanley Health Center at Reading, Warminster, Wilkes-Barres and York click the link for locations. and there are also remote services and telehealth.   Planned Parenthood now offer gender affirming hormone therapy and also many other important services, click the previous link and see notes below.

Planned Parenthood organizations offer a wide range services available to all people including primary care, HIV, SIT testing, counseling, and treatment PEP and PrEP, contraception and gynecological care including PAP smears. For services at each of PP organizations, click the services links in the above paragraphs.

Payment Options:  Many PP Health Centers accept insurance and offer financial help, check on the websites and with the center for details.

The service is intended for adults 18+, but the many PP Health Centers offer service to patients 16 to 17  and you may be able to get HRT with parental consent and  additional paperwork, check with the Health Center.

 

VA Health Care for LGBTQ Veterans in Pennsylvania – We no longer recommend VA Health Care or Clinics as a safe place for LGBTQ people to receive care.

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About the author, Gayle M. Frankenbach, Ph.D. is the mother of a Daughter, Lise and a transgender son Elliott.  Elliott and Gayle both passionately desire to care about and care for the trans community.  Elliott and Gayle also both love the unbound creativity of the cosplay community.  When we realized there is a big overlap between the two communities B.UR.SLF, LLC was born at the interface of these two great communities to serve them individually and together.  Elliott and Gayle also enjoy running a trans son & parent business to be visible for parents on a journey to visibly support their own trans kids and be a great allies.