“These bills run counter to the growing consensus in the medical community that improving access to gender-affirming care is a central means of improving health outcomes for transgender people,” the letter from the doctors and other health workers states. In Tennessee, Republicans have introduced a bill that would put strict restrictions on teens seeking sex change therapy.
NBC News: Over 200 Medical Professionals In The South Oppose Bills Targeting Trans Youth
More than 200 medical professionals in the South have signed an open letter opposing a bevy of state bills targeting health care treatment for transgender minors. In at least eight states, Republican lawmakers have introduced proposals that would punish — and in some cases jail — doctors and other medical professionals who provide puberty-suppressing drugs, cross-sex hormones and transition-related surgery to adolescents. Bills being debated in Missouri and New Hampshire would classify this gender-affirming care as “child abuse.” (Lang, 2/6)
Cincinnati Enquirer: Tennessee Sex Change Bill: Parents Would Be Charged With Child Abuse
A pair of Tennessee state Republicans has filed legislation to ban sex change therapy for children, to require three doctors’ approval for teens to receive any such treatment and to put criminal penalties in place. The bill, filed by state Rep. John Ragan, R-Oak Ridge, and state Sen. Janice Bowling, R-Tullahoma, would charge parents and medical providers with child abuse for taking part in the treatment process. (Allison, 2/6)
Meanwhile, in Virginia —
The Associated Press: Virginia Lawmakers Pass Protections For LGBTQ People
Virginia lawmakers passed comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation Thursday that advocates said makes the state the first in the South to enact such protections for LGBTQ people. The measures advanced on bipartisan votes, 59-35 in the House and 30-9 in the Senate as newly empowered Democrats continued to advance bills that Republicans blocked for years. Each chamber still must take up the other’s measure in procedural votes before the legislation can be sent to the governor, who supports it, for final approval. (2/6)
The Washington Post: Virginia Embraces Gay Rights With First-In-The-South Protections
“Its sends a message that the commonwealth is a safe and welcoming place for all people,” said Sen. Adam P. Ebbin (D-Alexandria), who was Virginia’s first openly gay legislator when he joined the House of Delegates in 2004. Today, the General Assembly has a five-member LGBT Caucus, including Del. Danica A. Roem (D-Prince William), the first openly transgender state lawmaker elected in the country. (Vozzella, 2/6)
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