Two Florida medical boards advance ban on gender-affirming care for minors

Florida’s state medical boards voted Friday afternoon to approve the language of a first-of-its-kind rule banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors

Florida’s state medical boards voted Friday afternoon to approve the language of a first-of-its-kind rule banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors who don’t already receive it. 

The rule updates the medical standards of practice in the state to mostly prohibit health care professionals from starting treatment for gender dysphoria in those younger than 18. Gender dysphoria refers the stress and discomfort some experience when their gender identity doesn’t match their sex assigned at birth. 

The measure bans the prescription of puberty blockers or hormone therapy to new patients who are minors, and it forbids gender-affirming surgeries. However, according to the Endocrine Society, the world’s largest organization dedicated to hormone research, adolescents generally do not receive gender-affirming surgery until they are 18, and the effects of a more common treatment for transgender minors, puberty blockers, are reversible.

Dr. Patrick Hunter, a pediatrician who serves on the Florida Board of Medicine, said during the hearing that the rule proposes “ethical, compassionate psychotherapy that respects the child’s experience.” He added that he believes “less harm needs to be done” to youth experiencing gender dysphoria. 

In a statement Friday, Equality Florida said once the rule goes into effect, it will be the only ban in the country of gender-affirming care for minors instituted by a state medical board.

https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-news/two-florida-medical-boards-advance-ban-gender-affirming-care-minors-rcna55725


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