CHICAGO — A transgender man who was denied critical gender-affirming medical care by his former employer and union’s health plan has filed a federal lawsuit.

Morgan Mesi stated he was devastated when the health plan provided by his employer and union refused to cover his medically necessary breast surgery.

He was a sales employee at Tenzing Wine & Spirits, LLC and Breakthru Beverage Illinois, LLC. Both companies are based in the Chicagoland area.

The medical treatment Mesi sought, including surgery, is standard treatment for gender dysphoria and widely recognized as medically necessary by the medical community. 

Mesi, a Chicagoan and transgender man, said the health plan’s refusal to cover his surgery allegedly caused him extreme distress.

Mesi viewed the surgery as a matter of life and death, and said he was experiencing regular suicidal thoughts. His health care providers submitted extensive documentation confirming that the surgery was medically necessary to treat Mesi’s acute and chronic distress. 

“This lawsuit is about my control over my own body,” said Mesi. “A board of trustees who have never even met me should not be the ones deciding if my gender-affirming health care is a medical necessity. That decision should be between me and my doctors.” 

The lawsuit alleges the health plan’s denial violated the federal and state laws that provide strong protections against discrimination for transgender and other LGBTQ individuals.

The employer, the union and the health plan had no basis to label critical gender-affirming health care merely “cosmetic” and refuse to pay for it, the lawsuit claims.

WGN-TV has reached out to both companies for comment, but has yet to hear back.