Israel has lowered the minimum age to be approved for a sex change from 21 to 18.
The new regulations mandate that sex-change candidates live a minimum of only one year with their new gender identity, rather than two, as the previous policy stated, according to the Haaretz newspaper.
The regulations also change the makeup of the committee that approves requests. A psychologist, endocrinologist, gynecologist, urologist and representative of the transgender community will sit on the committee.
The Health Ministry subsidizes sex changes as part of the country’s universal health care system. Patients will need to travel outside Israel for treatment, though, due to a lack of expertise in the country. The last sex change operation in Israel took place in 2012.
Haaretz reported that members of the transgender community had protested the regulations, leading to the change.
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