One of many bills introduced this year aiming to restrict transgender rights is a piece of legislation in Ohio that would ban gender-affirming treatment for minors. Ohio lawmakers are set to vote on Wednesday on whether to override the governor’s veto of this bill.
This year, in a presidential election cycle, the number of bills has surpassed last year’s record-breaking pace, fueling a contentious cultural debate in the country. Republicans present this stance as biologically extreme and harmful to children, while Democrats align with the medical consensus supporting transgender individuals and parents in making treatment decisions for their children.
Among the most restrictive proposals currently being considered, one Florida law would require all drivers to sign affidavits attesting to their sex at birth, and some transphobic defamation claims could face penalties of up to $35,000.
Parents and healthcare professionals in Ohio had informed Republican Governor Mike DeWine that gender-affirming care is essential and life-saving for many adolescents and teens. DeWine vetoed the transgender bill in late December, stating, “I believe that parents, not the government, should be making these very important medical decisions for their children.”
The bill had passed both chambers of his state’s legislature with more than the three-fifths majority needed to override a veto. It was uncertain whether the margins would hold when the Ohio House was to consider overriding DeWine’s veto on Wednesday or on January 24, when a state Senate vote was scheduled.
Transgender rights advocates initially praised DeWine. However, he later issued an executive order restricting transgender healthcare that appeared to be an effort to avoid a veto override and was criticized for imposing more restrictions on individuals than the bill itself.
At a press conference on Friday, the governor expressed concerns about “fly-by-night” clinics potentially taking advantage of transgender individuals without proper supervision or training.
DeWine’s executive order, now amended, means transgender Ohioans might face not only the prospect of a reinstated legislative ban on gender-affirming care but also additional restrictions. These mandate that adult transgender individuals must have comprehensive care plans prescribed by an endocrinologist and psychiatrist, reviewed by medical ethicists before receiving services. The executive order will not take effect until after a public comment period ends on February 5.
According to a group of transgender rights activists led by columnist Erin Reed, around 150 bills have been introduced in the 2023–24 legislative sessions across the United States, more than double the number introduced at this time last year.
Some measures would expand health restrictions to adults, in contrast to previous focuses on adolescents and teens under 18. For example, a South Carolina bill might prohibit Medicaid insurance for transgender individuals up to the age of 26.
Last year, a total of 560 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced and passed, with 22 of them imposing restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors, such as hormone therapy and puberty blockers, if not outright bans.
Republicans who support such bans argue that mainstream health organizations in the fields of medicine, physiology, and mental health are wrong and that providing transitional treatment to adolescents is tantamount to child abuse.
The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) recommends that transgender individuals receive thorough evaluations from a multidisciplinary team of medical professionals experienced in the field before starting hormone therapy or proceeding to surgery.
However, WPATH President Marci Bowers criticizes DeWine’s order as arbitrarily erecting barriers and difficulties for a vulnerable population, noting the unusual requirement for an ethicist in medicine.
Bowers says, “This is just an anti-diversity battle.” Many conservative voices, including the government, fail to understand biology’s complexity. Bowers highlights that it’s possible to have a Y chromosome and a vaginal birth, or a penis and two X chromosomes, and questions why it’s so hard for them to understand that there are different gender identities.
The American Principles Project, a traditional think tank, has been one of the organizations advocating for state-level legislation. According to President Terry Schilling, sex is binary and immutable. Schilling argues that individuals must come to love and accept their bodies, seeing a profound case of self-hatred. “The bodies of these individuals are in perfect condition. It’s their mind that needs fixing,” he states.
