Transgender Persons
Transgender is an umbrella term for persons whose gender identity or expression (masculine, feminine, other) is different from their sex (male, female) at birth. Gender identity refers to one’s internal understanding of one’s own gender, or the gender with which a person identifies. Gender expression is a term used to describe people’s outward presentation of their gender.
Gender identity and sexual orientation are different facets of identity. Everyone has a gender identity and a sexual orientation, but a person’s gender does not determine a person’s sexual orientation. Transgender people may identify as heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, or none of the above.

CDC Fact Sheets and Briefs
Resources for Transgender Persons
Resources for Health Care Providers and Public Health Professionals about Transgender Health
- HIV Prevention and Care for Transgender People
- Toolkit for Providing HIV Prevention Services to Transgender Women of Color
- LGBT Health Equity (HRSA)
- Eight Best Practices for HIV Prevention among Trans People [PDF – 129 KB] (University of California, San Francisco)
- LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center (Fenway Health)
- Medical Care of Trans and Gender Diverse Adults (Fenway Health)
- Transgender Health Resources (American Medical Student Association)
- Advancing LGBT Health and Well-being [PDF – 687 KB] (HHS)
- Sexual Health and Your Patients: A Provider’s Guide (National Coalition for Sexual Health)
Additional Resources
- LGBTQIA+ Glossary of Terms for Health Care Teams (Fenway Health)
- Know Your Rights: Health Care (National Center for Transgender Equality)
U.S. Government Resources
- Healthy People 2030: LGBT (health.gov)
- Plan for Health Data Collection on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Populations (HHS Office of Minority Health)
- Transgender Health Care Coverage (HealthCare.Gov)
- Top Health Issues for LGBT Populations Information & Resource Kit (SAMHSA)
- LGBT Behavioral Health Equity (SAMHSA)
- Bullying and LGBT Youth (StopBulling.gov)
General CDC and Partner Resources
- Cancer Prevention and Control
- Heart Disease
- Smoking & Tobacco Use
- Smoking Out a Deadly Threat: Tobacco Use in the LGBT Community (American Lung Association)
- Overweight and Obesity
- HIV Prevention
- STD Prevention
- Viral Hepatitis Information
- Intimate Partner Violence Prevention
- Sexual Violence Prevention
- Suicide Prevention