We’ll Come Back For You Real Soon

That’s what Transgender people have heard time and again. We heard it when New York State passed SONDA with all gender identity protections striped out. That was in late 2002, they still haven’t come back for us.

That is why I am very leery of the argument that whatever problems the current Health Care reform bill has we should back it whole-heartedly. That it’s just the first step and it can always be improved latter. Not bloody likely say I. Medicare was supposed to be a first step too, senior citizens now everyone else latter. The latter still hasn’t come.

My guess is that if this bill works at all health care reform will be considered a done deal and the administration and congress will move on to other things. The only likely scenario for health care to be revisited will be if the bill fails completely and then the only ones wanting to revisit it will be the Republicans to kill it.

So maybe this is the best we can get now. But to expect it to be a first step rather than a dead end goes against historical ex rather than a dead end goes against historical experience.