Nurse Suing Essentia Health Over Transgender Surgery

A nurse at Essentia Health in Ada is suing her employer and insurance provider over her transgender son.

Brittany Tovar says they denied medication and surgery for her 17-year-old to help him transition from a female to a male.

Tovar says it’s “hard to come to work when my employer considers my son a second-class citizen.”

She wants Essentia to change its policies regarding coverage for gender-reassignment services and surgery.

Representatives of Essentia and HealthPartners declined to comment on the lawsuit.