Gender-Affirming Care Bans for Minors Spread Across U.S. States
Medical experts argue these bans amount to state-sanctioned neglect and emotional abuse, while opponents claim they protect children from irreversible decisions.
- Since 2021, 23 states have banned gender-affirming care for transgender minors, including surgery, puberty blockers and hormone therapy.
- Experts argue that these bans amount to state-sanctioned medical neglect and emotional abuse, denying children access to routine health care that has been shown to decrease dramatically high rates of suicide and depression.
- Major medical associations, including the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, the World Medical Association, and the World Health Organization, all agree that gender-affirming care is evidence-based and medically necessary for both adults and minors.
- Opponents of gender-affirming care argue that children should not be empowered to act on feelings that may be temporary, that some adolescents who get such treatment later regret it and that some effects of hormone therapy can be irreversible, including infertility.
- Despite the opposition, many argue that the decision to pursue gender-affirming care should be left to the individuals and their parents, in consultation with medical professionals, rather than being dictated by legislation.
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