Home News Swiss health insurance ordered to pay for sex change

Swiss health insurance ordered to pay for sex change

Published on 09/01/2009

STRASBOURG – The European Court of Human Rights Thursday awarded a Swiss transsexual EUR 15,000 after her country's health insurance refused to pay for her sex change operation.

The Strasbourg-based court said Switzerland’s Federal Insurance Court had violated Nadine Schlumpf’s human rights when it dismissed her case against SWICA medical insurance for not reimbursing her operation costs.

Sclumpf, 72, was known as Max until she had a sex change in 2004. She had waited until her children were grown up and her wife had died of cancer in 2002 to start undergoing treatment.

[AFP / Expatica]