Retail giant Nordstrom is teaming up with Trans Lifeline and the digital queer healthcare service FOLX to fund hormone replacement therapy for transgender people as part of a Pride month initiative.
The microgrants will pay 100 percent of costs for a year or 50 percent for two years. The retailer has pledged $100,000 for the program; 75 percent will be reserved for Black and Indigenous people and people of color.
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Nordstrom will also donate a percentage of net sales from their new Be Proud gender-inclusive clothing collection to Trans Lifeline. The company will donate a total of $350,000 to support transgender equality across its initiatives this year.
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“The lead designer for this collection is queer and we engaged different members from the LGBTQIA+ community to provide insight on what they see as missing from the current apparel landscape,” the company explained.
“Trans Lifeline is thrilled to be partnering with Nordstrom to invest in the transformational power of peer support and redistribute resources to trans people,” said Bri Barnett, Director of Advancement at Trans Lifeline. “This historic gift will be instrumental in helping us answer over 25,000 calls this year and it will also provide 100 people with a year of life-saving medical care.”
“We’ve long believed that we’re all made better by the diversity that exists both within our communities and our workforce. Our values are centered on the notion of creating a place where every customer and employee is welcome, respected, appreciated and able to be their authentic selves,” said Farrell Redwine, senior vice president of human resources, Nordstrom, Inc. “This year, we are honored to partner with Trans Lifeline to extend those values and support the transgender community in accessing resources that make their lives easier.”
FOLX Health’s care offering includes digital video visits and easy messaging with trans-centering clinicians, medication and supplies (shipped directly), and lab monitoring for safety. The company also offers medication for erectile dysfunction and plans to soon offer PrEP.
“FOLX was founded as a digitally-native platform designed to reach the community, not hindering access based on location,” A.G. Breitenstein, CEO and Founder of FOLX Health, told LGBTQ Nation. “All medication is delivered directly and discreetly to the patient’s home, democratizing the health journey. In alignment with its goal to provide increased access, FOLX Health works to ensure that its pricing model is as approachable as possible. All treatments are priced to be as accessible as possible with plans starting at $59 a month, no insurance necessary. This includes unlimited access to clinicians, automatic refills, letters of support for name change, and every other detail that general, cis-gendered heterosexual physicians simply aren’t equipped to handle.”
The next set of microgrant applications open on June 1. You can sign up on the FOLX x Trans Lifeline HRT Care Fund website to be notified when the process opens. Twenty-nine applicants will be chosen for this round of funding.
