Peru stops labeling transgender people as mentally ill

STORY: Peru will stop listing individuals who identify as transgender, among others, as suffering from mental disorders.

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The announcement from the country's health ministry on Tuesday came after backlash to the move that critics called unnecessary discrimination.

Hundreds of protesters took the streets of the capital Lima last month to demand the new law be scrapped.

It described those who identify as transgender, along with "cross dressers" and those with "gender identity disorders" as mentally ill and eligible for health services via both public and private providers.

Opponents of the law argued the change was unnecessary, since existing rules already allowed for universal access to mental health services.

Alex Hernandez, a psychologist from the feminist organization ‘More Equality’, explains why the Tuesday reversal is an important win for the trans and broader LGBT community:

“To give visibility there has been a change in this manual of diagnosis, which removes LGBT people from the chapters on mental illness. It also sends a message to the citizens, politicians, authorities and people who don’t believe it deserves special attention, that there’s international and scientific progress which confirms that LGBT people and, in particular, trans people don’t have any illness.”

Peru’s health ministry said Tuesday it will no longer refer to the individuals as suffering from any disorder, but instead will use the term "gender discordance" for purposes of mental and behavioral health classifications eligible for care.