the average cost of living in the 15 safest states for trans people

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Today is election day for numerous states in the US, including Virginia — the only state in the South that has more protections for transgender people than anti-trans bills, according to The 19th. On Erin Reed’s Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Assessment Map, Virginia is the only state labeled low-risk in the Bible Belt.

Virginia will be voting for a new senator today, and the outcome of this particular race will decide whether or not Virginia will remain a safe haven for queer and trans folx in the South.

According to Track Trans Legislation, 45 states have proposed anti-trans bills in 2023. These bills threaten our rights to:

• use bathrooms aligned with our gender identity
• access gender-affirming healthcare
• learn about gender and sexuality in public schools
• support transgender and nonbinary children undergoing transition

As a result, transgender adults and families of transgender youth are fleeing to different states where their rights are still protected. According to journalist Erin Reed, who covers anti-trans legislation, an estimated 130,000 to 260,000 transgender people have already fled states that have introduced anti-trans bills in 2023.

Since moving to the US 19 years ago, I have lived in 5 different cities. I know firsthand about the financial and emotional consequences of housing instability, and I can tell you that anti-trans legislation is currently causing — and will continue to cause — financial trauma in our communities.

To help folx make educated financial decisions about where to move, I put together the average cost of living in the 15 safest states for transgender adults using the Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Map.

In the map, Erin Reed ranks states into six categories:

• Do Not Travel (currently only Florida)
• Worst laws passed
• High risk within 2 years
• Moderate risk within 2 years
• Low risk within 2 years
• Safest states with strong protections

The states listed below fall under the category Safest states with strong protections. Tomorrow, I will be posting a second round-up of states that fall under Low risk within 2 years, which includes Virginia.

Here is the average cost of living in the 15 safest states for transgender people, listed from lowest to highest cost of living.

New Mexico

Annual cost of living: $43,336

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $986

New Mexico’s state health plan does not cover gender-affirming care.

Oregon

Annual cost of living: $52,159

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,237

• Portland: $1,455

The Oregon Health Plan covers gender-affirming care. Single adults who make $1,616 or less per month qualify for the state’s health coverage. Full eligibility details are available on the Oregon Health Authority website.

Maryland

Annual cost of living: $52,651

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,331

• Baltimore: $1,085

Medicaid in Maryland covers gender-affirming care. Single adults who make up to $1,564 per month are eligible for the state’s health insurance plan.

Hawaii

Annual cost of living: $54,655

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $2,063

Conflicting policies make it unclear whether or not Hawaiians have access to gender-affirming care through their state health insurance plan.

Minnesota

Annual cost of living: $52,849

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,035

• Minneapolis: $1,114

MinnesotaCare covers gender-affirming care. Single adults who make up to $27,180 annually can qualify for the state’s health plan.

Illinois

Annual cost of living: $54,341

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,170

• Chicago: $1,364

Illinois Medicaid covers gender-affirming care. According to benefits.gov, single adults who make up to $20,121 per year before taxes are eligible for Illinois Medicaid. Answer a questionnaire on the Application for Benefits Eligibility Website for full eligibility details.

Vermont

Annual cost of living: $55,473

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,636

Vermont Medicaid covers gender-affirming care. According to benefits.gov, single adults who make up to $19,392 per year before taxes may be eligible for the state's health plan coverage. Full eligibility details can be found at Vermont Health Connect

Washington

Annual cost of living: $56,567

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $940-$1,590*

• Seattle: $1,598

Washington Apple Health covers gender-affirming care. Single adults who make $1,677 per month or less qualify for health coverage. Full eligibility requirements can be found on the Washington State Health Care Authority website.

*The average rent data was sourced from Zillow, except for the state of Washington, which comes from Apartment List.

New York

Annual cost of living: $58,571

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,652

• New York City metro area: $2,646

New York Medicaid covers gender-affirming care. According to benefits.gov, single adults who make up to $19,392 per year before taxes may be eligible for New York Medicaid.

You can find out if you’re eligible for New York state’s health plan by entering your zip code and creating an account on NY State of Health insurance marketplace.

Colorado

Annual cost of living: $59,371

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,445

• Denver: $1,618

Health First Colorado covers gender-affirming care. Single adults ages 19 to 65 who make up to $1,616 per month qualify for the state's health plan. Full eligibility requirements can be found on Connect for Health Colorado.

Connecticut

Annual cost of living: $59,371

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,408

HUSKY Health, Connecticut's state health plan, covers gender-affirming care. HUSKY D is the state health plan for adults without minor children, who make up to $1,944 per month.

New Jersey

Annual cost of living: $60,082

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,878

Single adults who make less than $1,677 per month are eligible for NJ Family Care, the state’s medicate plan, which covers gender-affirming care. New Jersey also has a State Health Benefits Program (SHBP) available to state and local government employees. SHBP covers gender reassignment surgery, but SHBP does not explicitly cover other gender-affirming care.

California

Annual cost of living: $60,272

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,846

• San Francisco: $2,620
• Los Angeles: $2,067
• San Diego: $2,218

Medi-Cal covers gender-affirming care. According to the California Department of Health Care Services, single adults who make $20,121 or less annually qualify for Medi-Cal healthcare coverage.

Massachusetts

Annual cost of living: $62,214

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $2,279

• Boston: $2,828

MassHealth covers gender-affirming care. According the benefits.gov, single adults who make up to $19,392 per year before taxes may be eligible for the state's health plan.

Washington, DC

Annual cost of living: $85,732

Median rent for a 1-bedroom apartment: $1,823

DC Health does not cover gender-affirming surgery as of 2016. Organizations like Planned Parenthood in DCprovides gender-affirming care, and Whitman-Walker provides gender-affirming care to minors as well.

Methodology

• The 15 states listed above are the safest states for trans people according to Erin Reed’s September 2023 Anti-Trans Legislative Risk Map for Adults
• The annual cost of living data is sourced from the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ Personal Consumption Expenditures 2022 Report released on October 4, 2023.
• The median rent for each state is sourced from Zillow Rentals Data updated on November 4, 2023 (Search settings: 1 bedroom » Apartments and Condos), with the exception of average rent in Washington State, which is sourced from Apartment List.
• The information about each state’s healthcare laws was sourced from the Movement Advancement Project’s report called Healthcare Laws and Policies: Medicaid Coverage for Transgender-Related Health Care last updated on August 16, 2023, with the exception of Washington, DC.
• Income level eligibility information for each state health plan was sourced from each state health plan’s website when it was available. For states where this information is not readily available on the state health plan’s website, I used the benefits.gov page for each state (search settings: family size » 1).

Please share this information with a friend who needs to move to a different state for their safety.

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