Deputy Minister of Health and Social Protection Eugena Tomini issued a clarification this Friday regarding the guidelines on hormone treatment. According to her, the document is a clinical guidance tool and not a final therapeutic protocol.
Tomini stated that the guidance was developed based on international practices and recommendations, as well as the assessment of a multidisciplinary team of specialists.
According to the Deputy Minister, the document aims to guide healthcare professionals in the process of recommending hormone therapy for individuals referred for this service and does not recommend the initiation of treatment during childhood.
She emphasized that the guidance refers only to adults within this target group, in accordance with current legislation and based on informed individual consent.
Regarding reimbursement, Tomini clarified that the guidance neither addresses nor establishes reimbursement schemes for hormone medications. The document includes only general recommendations and various types of hormone therapies based on international clinical practices.
For the first time in Albania’s public healthcare system, hormone therapy for transgender individuals will be provided. The Ministry of Health’s directive sets out the medical criteria, clinical procedures, and monitoring requirements for hormone therapy, which will be offered at the University Hospital Center “Mother Teresa” (QSUT) and funded through public resources.
The protocol envisages treatment for adults, as well as for adolescents aged 16 and over when approved by medical professionals and with the consent of their families.
The Ministry of Health order, approved on April 28 and signed by Deputy Minister Eugena Tomini, aims to address this issue.
