Surgery Funding Assistance

 

US Surgery Funding Assistance Programs


Following is a list of organizations that provide financial assistance for transition-related surgery. You'll find information about the organizations and their requirements for applying for aid. We also maintain a list of employers who offer trans-inclusive health insurance.

If you operate a charity that provides financial assistance and don't see your organization listed here, please contact us with the details!

Note: TransPulse does not administer any of these programs. To get in touch with them, click their names to be taken to their websites.

Last updated Sunday, September 25, 2016


Jim Collins Foundation

The Jim Collins Foundation offers two grant options. General Fund grants cover 100% of the medical fees associated with the gender-affirming surgery. Alternately, grants from the Krysallis Anne Hembrough Legacy Fund cover half of the associated fees and require each recipient to match funds received from the organization dollar-for-dollar with their own money or money raised through other means. Applicants may apply only once per grant cycle. When applying, you must choose either the General Fund or the Krysallis Anne Hembrough Legacy Fund - you cannot apply for both.

Criteria

  • Applicant must understand the steps that are currently required to undergo the medical process of transition, and must have completed - or have outlined plans to complete - the following steps:
    • Secure a letter of support from a licensed medical or mental health professional such as a psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker, or therapist.
    • Select a surgeon who is knowledgeable in transition-related surgeries. If applicant is chosen, the organization assumes this named surgeon is final.
    • Identify who will care for and provide support post-surgery.
    • If applicant has not completed all of these steps, but is planning to do so, please include your plans in your application.
  • Note: If you are selected for funding, the payment will be made directly to the doctor or hospital facility. You must comply with any and all requirements according to the Standards of Care of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), formerly known as the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA), as determined by your selected surgeon.
  • Applicant must demonstrate a genuine need for financial assistance.
  • Applicant must detail the efforts they have made to fund-raise and the amount of cost they will be able to cover on their own, if any.
The Jim Collins Foundation makes selections for grants based on a combination of demonstrated financial need and level of preparedness.

Point 5cc Annual Transgender Surgery Fund

Point of Pride’s Annual Transgender Surgery Fund is a scholarship-like program provides direct financial assistance to trans folks who cannot afford their gender-affirming surgery. The application period begins on November 1 each year and runs until November 30. All applications must be submitted online via the form on their website. Point of Pride accepts applications for any gender-affirming procedure. If this surgery is necessary to your transition, you are welcome to apply.

Criteria

Point of Pride's program has very few requirements for applicants in an effort to be as inclusive as possible. They require that applicants:
  • Applicants must identify as transgender (FtM, MtF, non-binary, genderqueer, gender non-conforming, and all other non-cis identities).
  • Applicants must be over the age of 18.
  • Applicants must already have begun saving money for their surgery.
  • Applicants must complete their surgery within 18 months of receiving the funds.
  • Applicants must complete their surgery in the United States with a U.S.-based surgeon (you may live outside of the U.S. and still apply).

Trans United with Family and Friends

This fund has no listed criteria, but does require three brief personal essays. To apply, click the link above and then click on the transgender flag image to access the application.

Trans Love Fund

(South Carolina residents only.)


The Trans Love Fund is a program of We Are Family, an organization dedicated to providing resources, support and leadership development to LGBTQ+ youth. The Trans Love Fund is dedicated to helping the transgender community of South Carolina by providing microgrants to trans-identified individuals for medical, legal, and emergency living expenses.