Gender transitioning care for minors is banned
April 12, 2023 at 5:27 p.m.
The number of young people who identify as transgender has almost doubled in recent years, according to a report completed in June of 2022 by the Williams Institute School of Law. As a result, gender-affirming care for minors provided by medical practitioners has grown. However, gender-affirming care will no longer be available to children in Indiana.
Governor Eric Holcomb signed Senate Bill 480 into law, joining eleven states that have banned gender-affirming care for minors regardless of parental consent.
“Permanent gender-changing surgeries with lifelong impacts and medically prescribed preparation for such a transition should occur as an adult, not as a minor," said Holcomb. "There has and will continue to be debate within the medical community about the best ways to provide physical and mental health care for adolescents who are struggling with their own gender identity, and it is important that we recognize and understand those
struggles are real. With all of that in mind, I have decided to sign SB 480 into law.”
The bill prohibits physicians from assisting minors in gender transition and subjects physicians and practitioners to disciplinary action. Physicians are banned from performing genital gender reassignment surgery or other surgeries to aid in gender transition. In addition, physicians will not be allowed to provide hormone replacement therapy or puberty blockers. The ban goes into effect on July 1. According to the bill, physicians can continue to prescribe hormone therapy until the end of the year to individuals who began the therapy before June 30, 2023.
“A child cannot consent to irreversible sex change surgery, and Indiana will no longer allow children to take dangerous drugs with long-term consequences like puberty blockers and hormone therapies in the name of extreme gender theories," said Sen. Mike Braun (R), District 63. "These kids are clearly having a hard time, and we need to give them compassion and mental health help rather than dangerous, un-tested, unapproved drugs and irreversible surgeries.”
The bill was co-authored by Sen. Jeff Raatz (R), District 27, amongst others, and was passed in the Senate with a vote of 36 to 12 before going to the Indiana House of Representatives, where it passed with a vote of 65-30.
ACLU of Indiana files a lawsuit as a result of ban
On the same day Holcomb signed the ban on gender-affirming care for minors, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Indiana filed a lawsuit on behalf of four transgender youth and their families, as well as a doctor and health care clinic, challenging an India law that prohibits healthcare professionals from providing or even referring transgender young people for medically necessary health care.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court, alleges that Senate Bill 480 violates the U.S. Constitution on multiple fronts, including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. In addition, the lawsuit claims that the law violates the federal requirements of the Medicaid Act and the Affordable Care Act because it prohibits essential medical services that would otherwise be authorized and reimbursed by Medicaid.
Holcomb vetos bill to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' sports
Although Holcomb signed Senate Bill 480 into law, last year he vetoed a bill to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' sports. However, the state legislature quickly overrode his veto, and the bill became law. The ACLU of Indiana swiftly filed a lawsuit on behalf of a 10-year-old transgender girl who could not participate in girls' school sports due to the new legislation, which delayed when the law would take effect. Ultimately, the 10-year-old girl moved to a charter school, and the lawsuit was dismissed, and the law took effect early this year.
How Many Adults and Youth Identify as Transgender in the United States?
Transgender people are those whose gender identity or expression is different from their sex assigned at birth. According to a report completed in June of 2022 by the Williams Institute School of Law, using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, and advanced statistical modeling, the following was determined:
•Over 1.6 million adults (ages 18 and older) and youth (ages 13 to 17) identify as transgender in the United States, or 0.6% of those ages 13 and older.
•Among U.S. adults, 0.5% (about 1.3 million adults) identify as transgender.
•Among youth ages 13 to 17 in the U.S., 1.4% (about 300,000) identify as transgender.
•Of the 1.3 million adults who identify as transgender, 38.5% (515,200) are transgender women, 35.9% (480,000) are transgender men, and 25.6% (341,800) reported they are gender non-conforming.
Research shows transgender individuals are younger on average than the U.S. population. We find that youth ages 13 to 17 are significantly more likely to identify as transgender (1.4%) than adults ages 65 or older (0.3%).
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The number of young people who identify as transgender has almost doubled in recent years, according to a report completed in June of 2022 by the Williams Institute School of Law. As a result, gender-affirming care for minors provided by medical practitioners has grown. However, gender-affirming care will no longer be available to children in Indiana.
Governor Eric Holcomb signed Senate Bill 480 into law, joining eleven states that have banned gender-affirming care for minors regardless of parental consent.
“Permanent gender-changing surgeries with lifelong impacts and medically prescribed preparation for such a transition should occur as an adult, not as a minor," said Holcomb. "There has and will continue to be debate within the medical community about the best ways to provide physical and mental health care for adolescents who are struggling with their own gender identity, and it is important that we recognize and understand those
struggles are real. With all of that in mind, I have decided to sign SB 480 into law.”
The bill prohibits physicians from assisting minors in gender transition and subjects physicians and practitioners to disciplinary action. Physicians are banned from performing genital gender reassignment surgery or other surgeries to aid in gender transition. In addition, physicians will not be allowed to provide hormone replacement therapy or puberty blockers. The ban goes into effect on July 1. According to the bill, physicians can continue to prescribe hormone therapy until the end of the year to individuals who began the therapy before June 30, 2023.
“A child cannot consent to irreversible sex change surgery, and Indiana will no longer allow children to take dangerous drugs with long-term consequences like puberty blockers and hormone therapies in the name of extreme gender theories," said Sen. Mike Braun (R), District 63. "These kids are clearly having a hard time, and we need to give them compassion and mental health help rather than dangerous, un-tested, unapproved drugs and irreversible surgeries.”
The bill was co-authored by Sen. Jeff Raatz (R), District 27, amongst others, and was passed in the Senate with a vote of 36 to 12 before going to the Indiana House of Representatives, where it passed with a vote of 65-30.
ACLU of Indiana files a lawsuit as a result of ban
On the same day Holcomb signed the ban on gender-affirming care for minors, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Indiana filed a lawsuit on behalf of four transgender youth and their families, as well as a doctor and health care clinic, challenging an India law that prohibits healthcare professionals from providing or even referring transgender young people for medically necessary health care.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court, alleges that Senate Bill 480 violates the U.S. Constitution on multiple fronts, including the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. In addition, the lawsuit claims that the law violates the federal requirements of the Medicaid Act and the Affordable Care Act because it prohibits essential medical services that would otherwise be authorized and reimbursed by Medicaid.
Holcomb vetos bill to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' sports
Although Holcomb signed Senate Bill 480 into law, last year he vetoed a bill to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' sports. However, the state legislature quickly overrode his veto, and the bill became law. The ACLU of Indiana swiftly filed a lawsuit on behalf of a 10-year-old transgender girl who could not participate in girls' school sports due to the new legislation, which delayed when the law would take effect. Ultimately, the 10-year-old girl moved to a charter school, and the lawsuit was dismissed, and the law took effect early this year.
How Many Adults and Youth Identify as Transgender in the United States?
Transgender people are those whose gender identity or expression is different from their sex assigned at birth. According to a report completed in June of 2022 by the Williams Institute School of Law, using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System, and advanced statistical modeling, the following was determined:
•Over 1.6 million adults (ages 18 and older) and youth (ages 13 to 17) identify as transgender in the United States, or 0.6% of those ages 13 and older.
•Among U.S. adults, 0.5% (about 1.3 million adults) identify as transgender.
•Among youth ages 13 to 17 in the U.S., 1.4% (about 300,000) identify as transgender.
•Of the 1.3 million adults who identify as transgender, 38.5% (515,200) are transgender women, 35.9% (480,000) are transgender men, and 25.6% (341,800) reported they are gender non-conforming.
Research shows transgender individuals are younger on average than the U.S. population. We find that youth ages 13 to 17 are significantly more likely to identify as transgender (1.4%) than adults ages 65 or older (0.3%).