The mental health field has traditionally considered only two possible solutions for overcoming the gender dysphoria of transsexuals: changing gender identity to match the physical body or changing the body to match gender identity (Carroll, 1999). Other options exist, however, and clinical evidence has indicated that some preoperative transsexuals have discovered that it may be psychologically sufficient to express themselves through such activities as cross-dressing (Carroll, 1999). Nevertheless, in most cases, psychotherapy, without accompanying biological alterations, has generally been inadequate to help transsexuals adjust to their bodies and gender identities. For such individuals the best course of action might be to change their bodies to match their minds, through surgical and hormonal alteration of genital anatomy and body physiology. However, medical alteration is not a simple solution, because it is both time-consuming and costly.
A recent study revealed that 33% of major American employers offer transgender — inclusive benefits including sex-reassignment surgery (Gillespie, 2012). This fivefold benefits increase from the previous year reflects a major push from guidelines provided by the Human Rights Campaign. In future years we can expect an increase in research data pertaining to sex-reassignment as a direct result of the increased affordability of these procedures now often covered under employer benefits policies.