Good morning Mr. Chairman and members of the committee.
My name is Cody Ingle, and I am an Application Support Specialist at a medical clinic in Sioux Falls. I also serve as the Vice President of Sioux Falls Pride in a volunteer capacity and am an advocate for LGBTQ South Dakotans. I thank you for the opportunity to testify before you in opposition to the proposed House Bill 1076.
Today I urge you to oppose House Bill 1076 for a variety of reasons. First and foremost because I believe transgender South Dakotans should be able to access identity documents that accurately reflect who they are. In public discussion about this bill it is clear that there exists a misunderstanding of the way that Public Health Information is tracked both in the issuing of a birth certificate and in the process of electronic records. As a person who professionally works with electronic medical records, I know that correct identification of a patient’s gender identity on Electronic Medical Records helps to facilitate better care and reporting for public health trends.
Despite arguments to the contrary, allowing transgender people to update their birth certificates in no way undermines the accuracy of assessment risks, susceptibility to genetic disorders, or other medical concerns. In fact, most, if not all, medical record systems allow for distinction between sex assigned at birth and gender identity. Medical systems are fully capable of handling the birth certificates of transgender people that have been corrected. Simply put, medical records can reflect the important data needed without denying a person the ability to be themselves. In fact, legal documents that affirm who a Transgender person is allows for people to feel more comfortable reporting data for healthcare.
Please vote no on House Bill 1076.
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to testify.