Florida’s Republican-controlled Legislature has passed a bill that prohibits transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming care like puberty blockers. Opponents of the measure argue that the law will further marginalize vulnerable children. The bill also prevents universities, local governments, and other agencies that access Florida’s Medicaid programs from using public funds to cover gender-affirming treatments for anyone in the state. In addition, it makes it easier for patients to sue doctors who perform gender-affirming treatments. The legislation, which Governor Ron DeSantis requested, has now been sent to him to sign into law.

Once signed, Florida will become one of more than a dozen states that have banned doctors from providing minors with gender-affirming care such as hormone therapies or, in rare cases, surgeries. The approved legislation, known as SB 254, is less restrictive than earlier versions of the measure, which also sought to prohibit private insurance companies from covering gender-affirming care to minors and adults, and to forbid any changes to gender on birth certificates for transgender individuals. State Representative Randy Fine (R-Palm Bay), the sponsor of the House bill, said he will revisit these provisions during the state’s next annual legislative session.

This is not the first time that the Florida Legislature has focused on the transgender community. On Wednesday, GOP lawmakers passed a bill that prohibits school employees from asking students for their preferred pronouns, while also limiting school staff from sharing their pronouns with students if they “do not correspond” with their sex. They also passed a bill that makes it a misdemeanor trespassing offense for someone to use bathrooms in government buildings and schools that do not align with their sex at birth.

Governor DeSantis, who is expected to announce a White House bid soon, has publicly opposed gender-affirming care and has stated that doctors who perform such surgeries should be sued. Last year, his administration blocked state-subsidized health care from paying for transgender people’s treatments while Florida medical boards banned transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming care. Currently, the state’s actions banning Medicaid payments and minors from receiving gender-affirming care are facing separate lawsuits in federal court.

Medical experts say that gender-affirming care for children rarely, if ever, includes surgery. Instead, doctors are more likely to recommend counseling, social transitioning, and hormone replacement therapy. The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association support gender-affirming care for adults and adolescents. However, Democrats in Florida have argued that the new law will harm children diagnosed with gender dysphoria and lead to further alienation of transgender individuals in the state. State Representative Jennifer “Rita” Harris (D-Orlando) stated that “trans people are no different because they are humans too. Their existence is valid, and they’re no more likely to commit a crime or seek to hurt someone than anyone else.”

Source: Politico