Transgender sues Catholic hospital in California for refusing to remove uterus

A woman who identifies as a man is suing a Catholic hospital in Sacramento, California after it abruptly canceled a scheduled hysterectomy.

Evan Minton, 35, was scheduled to undergo a complete hysterectomy at Dignity Health's Mercy San Juan Medical Center in Carmichael last August. However, when he informed a nurse on the day before her appointment that he identifies as transgender, the surgery was canceled.

Lindsey Dawson, the surgeon who regularly performs hysterectomies at Mercy San Juan, was able to perform the surgery at another hospital in Sacramento three days later. However, Minton, who came out as transgender six years ago, said that the initial denial still causes him frustration and disappointment.

"As much as I wanna let it go, I know that what happened to me [and] having those resources and being able to do it, I know that is really uncommon especially for transgender people," Minton told ABC10. "I don't have animosity but I do have a deep concern that this might happen to other people," he added.

On Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit against Dignity Health on behalf of Minton.

The group argued in its lawsuit that the denial is a violation of California's Unruh Act, which prohibits businesses from discriminating against patrons because of their gender. The suit is seeking $4,000 in damages as well as a court order to force the hospital to allow the procedures in the future.

"The refusal of Dignity Health to allow a doctor to perform this common procedure simply because the patient is transgender is discriminatory," said Elizabeth Gill, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU of Northern California. "This is a hospital that is open to the general public so it's illegal for them to turn away someone based on gender identity," she continued.

In a statement, Dignity Health contended that its services are available to "all members of the communities we serve without discrimination." However, it also noted that it does not provide elective sterilizations at its Catholic facilities in accordance with the Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services (ERDs) and the medical staff bylaws.

Dignity Health Mercy San Juan officials claimed that they have not yet received the complaint against them, but they said they were "happy" to provide the use of another Dignity Health hospital to Minton and his surgeon to carry out the procedure.