The government ended 2019 on a pleasant note: the prime minister distributed Sehat Special cards to trans people in Peshawar on Monday. Under the health safety net, all trans people, the most marginalised segment of our society, will be given Sehat cards. To facilitate them, the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) has established desks in all centres for the registration of transgender persons so that Sehat Insaf cards are provided to them. Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza says the only procedural work is that the community members need to personally declare themselves as transgender to get the card. Under the facility, a transgender is entitled for Rs720,000 medical treatment from 300 private and public hospitals across the country. Our mass media as well as the public need to inform the trans community about the health facility, take them to NADRA centres for registration and get them Sehat Sahulat Programme cards. The programme will benefit 15 million families with free health facilities by the end of 2020. The government has taken a crucial step by issuing cards to the trans community. It is, however, yet to be seen how they will be treated in hospitals. The presence of trans people at a hospital may create unease for doctors and paramedics who are not accustomed to deal with them. It is high time that doctors and supporting staff undergo trainings on effectively providing healthcare to the transgender community. Transgenders complain that they are often ignored or mistreated at clinics and hospitals regardless of their needs. One solution could be the allocation of separate clinics for them, which would require a great deal of funds and time. A better solution is training the staff for dealing with the community.
The provision of health cards to transgender people is one of many steps in recent years for their welfare. It began in 2011 when then chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry ordered NADRA authorities to provide them with identity cards. In 2018, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, gave trans people the right to self-identify on all official documentation. With the issue of documents, several transgender people have been inducted in government jobs. In Sindh, some trans people have been hired in the police department. Despite all these measures, the community faces discrimination from society. Several trans people have been subject to attacks. As a society, we all need to work to stem hate crimes against transgender people. *