An attempt by Kansas state lawmakers to override Gov. Laura Kelly’s veto of a bill banning transgender procedures for children failed after two Republicans joined Democrats to uphold the veto, clearing the way for the use of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and transgender surgeries for kids.
The two Republicans whose votes scuppered the veto override were Kansas Reps. Susan Concannon and Jesse Borjon, who both expressed concern that the measure took away from the ability of parents to decide about health-related procedures for their children.
Kansas Sen. Mark Steffen, a Republican who voted to override the veto, told The Kansas City Star that a “woke” health care system was pushing gender transition on vulnerable children.
More Details
When it first cleared the Kansas Senate and House earlier this year before meeting with the governor’s veto, Substitute Bill for Senate Bill 233 prohibited health care providers from performing transgender surgeries and procedures such as hormone treatment and puberty blockers on children.It also allowed a civil cause of action against providers offering such treatments, while restricting the use of state funds to promote so-called “gender-affirming” procedures on minors. The measure also prohibited professional liability insurance firms from covering damages for health care providers offering gender-transition procedures to children and barred state employees who work with children from promoting transitioning for children struggling with gender dysphoria.
When Ms. Kelly, a Democrat, vetoed the bill in mid-April, she said her decision prevented the trampling of parental rights.
Republicans who backed the bill argued that the ban would protect vulnerable children from what they said were risky experimental procedures whose outcomes are poorly understood and have the potential to result in long-term health problems.
“Banning access to essential health care not only denies transgender youth the support they desperately need but also sends a damaging message that their identities are invalid and unworthy of acceptance. This rejection can lead to profound psychological consequences, including increased rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicidality,” they wrote.
Gender-reassignment “treatments” have become a prominent issue in state legislatures nationwide, as Democratic and Republican lawmakers advocate for bills that either advance or restrict such procedures.
No Confirmed Benefit
While some advocates of “gender-affirming” therapies and surgeries claim that they can help people suffering from gender dysphoria, there is little evidence for this.A national organization of pediatricians recently put out a policy statement saying that gender-transition procedures such as puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones provide no mental health benefit to youth with gender dysphoria.
“There is no long-term evidence that mental health concerns are decreased or alleviated after ‘gender-affirming therapy,’” they wrote.
Many individuals who have undergone it “later regret those interventions and seek to align their gender identity with their sex,” they said.
“Because of the risks of social, medical, and surgical interventions, many European countries are now cautioning against these interventions while encouraging mental health therapy,” the group added.
“Therefore, it is unknown whether people with gender dysphoria who use puberty blockers experience more improvement in gender dysphoria, depression, anxiety, and quality of life than those with gender dysphoria who do not use them. There is very low certainty about the effects of puberty blockers on suicidal ideation,” it said.
