Lawmakers in the Republican House of Representatives have approved a controversial measure restricting physicians’ care for transgender patients under the age of 18.
The The invoice was unexpectedly put to the vote early Thursday morning and presented to lawmakers two hours later.
After that, doctors are allowed to prescribe drugs to minors that block the effects of puberty, but they can’t use surgical or hormonal treatments for gender dysphoria. If the law becomes law, minors who are already taking hormone treatments will be allowed to continue taking them.
Puberty blockers may be helpful for those who want to transition before puberty or postpone the decision, but they offer no help for people who have already started puberty, said Leonardo Hinnant, an 18-year-old transgender man from DeKalb County.
“I myself had fully completed puberty by the time I was 13 when I started talking to my medical team about hormone therapy,” he said. “Puberty blockers were not a viable option for me and I cannot imagine the pain and agony I would have endured if I could not be medically transitioned by 18.”
“These laws are made out of fear and ignorance for people who are different,” he added.
Leonardo Hinnant urged lawmakers to vote against the SB 140 sponsored by state Senator Carden Summers (left). Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
Republicans have pushed the bill through the chamber by a 96-75 party-line vote, over objections from Democrats, transgender Georgians, hundreds of physicians and others who have argued the bill usurps parental decision-making, medical professionals’ ability to Community hampers serving their patients and endangering the emotional well-being of those affected.
Doctors offering the banned treatments could have their licenses revoked The house version was dropped a provision that would have protected physicians from civil or criminal charges for violating the proposed law. Because of the change, the bill will be sent back to the Senate for consideration as early as Monday, with a vote open to it. The session ends on March 29th.
Matéo Penado, a transgender man from Hall County, said he fears the legislation will cause transgender youth to experience even more marginalization. He said he’s already hearing from trans friends whose parents don’t support them.
The 22-year-old Georgia State University student fears those who have supportive families will now face discrimination from the state if the bill gets Kemp’s signature.
“It’s heartbreaking to see this when a child is accepted by the parents and the parents go through such struggles, multiple therapy sessions, multiple doctor meetings, multiple blood test appointments – the amount of blood tests you have to do to get ahead (testosterone) , I hate it,” he said. “That’s a lot, but it’s the effort that transgender youth and their parents make to get the gender-affirming, life-saving medical care they need.”
Nicole Gustafson, co-director and facilitator of Our Resilient Community, a queer-focused school in Athens, said she worries for the families of children who are too young to take hormone therapy and are being forced through puberty to traverse that doesn’t line up with their sense of gender.
“I work with trans teenagers,” she said. “I know their struggles. And I know the confidence that comes when they receive that care at the right time for them. I also know how difficult it is already to access this care – no one takes it lightly or receives it without the support of parents and a medical team who know their situation first-hand.”
“Nobody chooses to be trans and it’s really difficult to get others into such a personal experience,” she added. “With supportive parents and access to care, these children thrive and learn. Without these, they face struggles that many of us cannot imagine.”
Advocacy groups like Georgia Equality, Voices for Georgia’s Children and others are trying to rally their supporters to condemn the law as the law nears the finish line.
More than 500 healthcare providers in Georgia also signed a letter sent to lawmakers on Monday, saying they were “appalled that politicians are promoting an agenda with such disregard for medical care standards.”
Supporters of the bill say it will “pause” decision-making until trans Georgians are older
Proponents framed the law as a safeguard to protect children and delay their ability to make a permanent physical change that they might later regret.
Rep. Mark Newton, an Augusta Republican and physician, argued that there was no consensus in the broader medical community on how to care for young people with gender dysphoria.
And he said some of the national medical groups that have urged state officials to oppose state laws that would ban treatment related to sex change were previously wrong, pointing to a changing attitude towards opioids in pain management had.
“I think we can all agree that children deserve care, including mental health care, they deserve compassion,” Newton said. “This law offers them the opportunity to be the adult making an informed decision about a permanent, irreversible change in their own body.”
Newton called the measure a “light touch” that’s tightly written. Another Senate bill that would have stalled in the Senate also banned drugs that block puberty.
Democratic Smyrna MP Teri Anulewicz returns to her desk Thursday after impassionedly pleading with colleagues to reject SB 140. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
At least 13 Democrats spoke out against the law Thursday, with several of them emotionally urging their peers to oppose the law. Part of the debate spilled over into other bills, including one that would allow children to sell soda or other goods on private property without a permit.
“I think you mean well, but that’s wrong,” said Assemblyman Karla Drenner, an Avondale Estates Democrat who was the first openly gay Assemblyman in Georgia.
“To all the children in our state who will be adversely affected, please do not lose hope. Please don’t give up. Please don’t kill yourself. This world is worth it. We need you,” Drenner said.
Rep. Michelle Au, a Johns Creek Democrat who is an anesthetist, called the bill “state-mandated misconduct.” And Rep. Park Cannon, an Atlanta Democrat who identifies as queer, said the measure will only send people to the black market to find gender-affirming drugs — a desperate move that has prompted lawmakers to help parents when it comes to medicinal cannabis.
Democrats also said their GOP peers would strip parents of the power to make important health decisions for their children on the heels handed over a number of bills last year intended to strengthen parental decision-making, particularly in K-12 public schools.
“We have codified legislation decreing that parents have ultimate authority to determine if and when their children receive vaccinations, if and when their children can wear a mask amid a pandemic, if and when their children do anything about learn darkness. difficult, complicated and confusing moments in our history,” said Teri Anulewicz, Democratic MP from Smyrna. “We have affirmed in this Chamber that parents have that authority.”
This year’s measure follows a controversial bill that passed in the last few minutes last year’s session by adding to another that blocks transgender students from playing on sports teams that match their gender identity.
“Nothing in this legislation prevents an adult from pursuing a different lifestyle based on their feelings, we must draw a line for the long-term protection of children,” Rep. Will Wade, a Dawsonville Republican, said on SB 140.
