America is split on gender-affirming care for trans teens
Image: WSJ/Guttmacher Institute/AP/UCLA Williams Institute
So far this year, 16 US states have enacted new laws restricting gender-affirming healthcare for transgender minors, while 11 states have passed new laws protecting healthcare for all trans residents. This marks a record-setting year for such legislation.
📝 A deeper dive… Since January, lawmakers in mostly GOP-controlled states have introduced 106 bills to restrict one or both of the main forms of gender-affirming care for minors: a) medication that blocks the release of puberty-related hormones, and b) surgery that helps transition a person’s gender. That’s up from 52 similar bills introduced last year, per data from the reproductive research group Guttmacher Institute.
On the flip side, Democratic lawmakers in 21 states are working on “trans refugee” bills that would allow out-of-state minors to seek gender-affirming care within their borders to avoid criminal prosecution. Such laws are already on the books in four other states, per advocacy group LGBTQ Victory Institute.
What are the arguments?
- Republican lawmakers supporting the restrictions express concern over the long-term effects of gender-based procedures for minors, with many saying that any minor experiencing gender dysphoria should have to wait until they’re adults before deciding to transition.
- Democratic lawmakers supporting the protections say scientific research has consistently shown that providing gender-affirming healthcare leads to improved mental health outcomes for minors, while denying such care is linked to higher rates of anxiety, depression, and self-harm or suicide.
📸 Big picture: ~1.4% of the US population between the ages of 13 and 17 is transgender, including a total of 62,000 minors living in the 19 states that currently restrict gender-affirming care.
📊 Flash poll: Which political party’s stance on gender-affirming healthcare for minors do you most agree with?
See a 360° view of what media pundits are saying →
Sprinkles from the Left
- Some commentators argue that gender-affirming treatments for minors represent potentially life-saving care for those individuals, and should be made widely available to those who need it.
- Others contend that the government has no business interfering in personal medical decisions, and point out the hypocrisy of “small government” Republicans who widely support such laws.
- “Abbott and Paxton, don't threaten parents of trans kids and their doctors” –Houston Chronicle Editorial Board
- “Iowa is wrong to single out transgender children” –Des Moines Register Editorial Board
- “Idaho lawmakers seem obsessed with picking on trans kids. Leave the kids alone” –Idaho Statesman Editorial Board
Sprinkles from the Right
- Some commentators argue that the recent rise in the amount of youth identifying as trans shows that societal influences are largely responsible for the trend, and minors shouldn’t be allowed to make big medical decisions based on social pressure.
- Others contend that Republicans are actually the party seeking to protect trans kids with the new laws, by not allowing adolescents to make an irreversible decision while their brains are still developing.
- “The American Academy of Pediatrics’ Dubious Transgender Science” –Julia Mason and Leor Sapir, WSJ
- “Yes, Protect Trans Kids” –Judson Berger, National Review
- “Liberal media refuses to tell full truth about transgender kids” –Lisa Selin Davis, NY Post
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