Elise Takahama is a health reporter at The Seattle Times, covering Washington’s hospitals, health care workers, public health, medical technology and research, and the ongoing impacts of COVID-19. She’s particularly interested in reporting on the state’s gaps in health equity, and is hoping to focus on access to gender-affirming care and LGTBQ+ health, especially for trans teens and young adults in the Pacific Northwest. Takahama graduated from Boston University and grew up in South Pasadena, California.

For the 2023 National Fellowship, she will look at the experiences and challenges of trans and gender-diverse youth who have begun to explore gender-affirming health care in the Pacific Northwest.

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