Kentucky Becomes 12th State To Ban Gender Affirming Care After GOP Lawmakers Override Governor’s Veto

Topline

Republican lawmakers in Kentucky voted overwhelmingly to override Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of a bill restricting gender-affirming health care and banning transgender students from using bathrooms matching their gender identity—amid a wave of bills in GOP-led states targeting trans access.

Kentucky lawmakers voted to override Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto on a bill restricting … [+] gender-affirming health care for minors.

Key Facts

Kentucky’s state Senate voted 29-8 to override Beshear’s veto Wednesday afternoon, while the House voted 76-23, officially making the bill law.

The bill prohibits transgender students in public schools from using restrooms, locker rooms and showers matching their gender identity, and instructs school officials to ban instruction on sexuality and sexually transmitted diseases for children below fifth grade.

It also prohibits health care providers from providing gender-affirming services to minors “for the purpose of attempting to alter the appearance or perception of the minor’s sex.”

Under the law, health care providers’ licenses can be revoked for any violations.

Tangent

The legislation comes amid a wave of similar bills proposed by Republican lawmakers who argue the restrictions protect children, make students safe in public bathrooms, and prevent minors from receiving hormonal care or surgeries they could regret later in life. Kentucky state Rep. Shane Baker (R) said at a rally Wednesday the bill prevents residents from going “down the path of fantasy” that could lead them to a “miserable” place due to “decisions that they made when they were young.”

Chief Critic

LGBTQ advocates, as well as medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, however, argue gender-affirming care is often necessary, and that transgender children face significantly higher rates of depression and suicide. In a statement following the decision, the ACLU Kentucky director Amber Duke criticized lawmakers for ignoring “trans Kentuckians, medical and mental health professionals and accredited professional associates,” whose pleas “fell on deaf ears.” Duke also insisted the ACLU will file a legal challenge in regards to the bill, writing, “To the commonwealth (of Kentucky): we will see you in court.” The Human Rights Campaign, meanwhile, tweeted after the vote: “LGBTQ+ youth in the state deserve so much more.”

Big Number

12. That’s how many states have enacted laws restricting gender affirming health care for minors, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas, South Dakota and Utah, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Lawmakers in 21 more states are considering bills that would ban gender affirming care.

Key Background

Kentucky lawmakers passed the bill along party lines earlier this month, sending it to Beshear’s desk, where the Democratic governor vetoed it last week, telling reporters that parents, and not the government, “should get to make important medical decisions about their children.” With the GOP-led legislature’s override, Kentucky joins a growing list of states to enact laws targeting transgender access, including Arkansas, where Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) signed a law last week banning transgender students from using school bathrooms that match their gender identity. Republican lawmakers in 10 other states are pushing for similar legislation, including in Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and Texas. A total of 435 bills targeting people who identify as LGBTQ are moving through state legislatures in 37 states, according to the Human Rights Campaign.