In Catalonia, since 2015, transgender people have been able to request this Change from the official name to the name on the health card. A given name is the name of the gender with which a person identifies and not the sex assigned to them at birth that appears on the DNI. Therefore, this procedure allows, in the field of health care, to treat and call transgender people as they want, even if the name is not changed in official documents.
It is a pioneering procedure that is being used by more and more people: Since 2015, 2,300 people have taken this step, 519 of them in 2023.According to data provided by the Ministry of Equality.
This number represents a slight increase compared to previous years: in 2022, 451 health cards were processed and in 2021, 445. The increase is more clear when compared to the data for the year 2020, in which 229 cards were managed, and with the year 2019, with the processing of 187 cards.
to'Adele MiravitOne of the people who accepted this procedure says that it helped him integrate better into society. “I have defined my identity socially with complete peace of mindWhen going to the doctor or pharmacy, he explains:
“They treat me like a woman, they call me by name, and even as a curious person: I went to do a flow measurement, a urine measurement, and they told me if I wanted to do it standing or sitting.”
In addition, this name change also prevented him from being exposed to extremely violent situations, such as for example having to give explanations about his underwear.
Simple procedure
Making this change isn't complicated, he explains Maria Giuffre, Technician at Maresme LGTBI Integrated Care Service. You must fill out the form, attach the DNI and the process begins. It is an action that can be done Online and designed for over 16 years. Minors need Licensing their legal representatives.
On the other hand, changing the name and gender on the DNI is more complicated, but when the new health card arrives, with the correct name, an official document called “faig constar” also arrives and links this card to the national identity document.
Now, with the Comprehensive Law on Gender Identity and Expression just being drafted for submission to Parliament, the Public Mandate wants to expand the option to change to a given name to include all areas, forms and applications of managing transgender people, as well as including the non-binary gender box for those who do not identify as male. Or female.
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