Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Bills Target Trans Minors' Gender Care And Bathroom Use
The Hill: Iowa Governor Signs Transgender Bathroom Bill, Bans Gender-Affirming Care For Youth
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) on Wednesday signed into law two bills that will restrict the rights of transgender young people in the state. One of them, Senate File 538, prohibits doctors from providing gender-affirming health care, including puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries, to transgender minors. The other, Senate File 482, bars transgender students from using school restrooms or locker rooms that are consistent with their gender identity. (Migdon, 3/23)
St. Louis Public Radio: Missouri Senate Blocks Transgender Youth Health Care And Sports
The Missouri Senate passed bills Thursday barring transgender minors in Missouri from receiving gender-affirming health care and competing on sports teams that align with their gender identity. Lawmakers voted 24-8 on the bill targeting transition-related health care and 25-8 on the transgender student athlete bill. Both bills now go to the Missouri House. (Kellogg, 3/23)
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: World’s Leading Transgender Health Experts Attack Regulations Planned By Missouri AG
The world’s leading medical experts in transgender health took aim Thursday at a proposed emergency regulation that would restrict gender-affirming medical care for minors in Missouri. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s proposed rules are “based upon manipulated statistics, flawed reports, and incomplete data, and prevents the provision of medically-necessary care,” read a statement from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health. (Munz, 3/23)
Axios: What States Are Restricting Transgender Health Care
Politicians in red states are placing new limits on gender-affirming care for transgender people, creating a patchwork of sanctions on health providers who offer such services and limits on access. Over 100 pieces of legislation introduced in state legislatures in 2023 focus on banning aspects of gender-affirming medical care, according to data from the American Civil Liberties Union. (Gonzalez, 3/23)
The Washington Post: Transgender Patients Face Discrimination During Health Care Visits
One trans woman recalled a doctor calling her “it.” A nonbinary person was grilled about their use of “they/them” pronouns during an ultrasound. A trans-masculine person moved out of Tennessee, fearing they would lose access to hormone therapy as legislators passed bills restricting gender-affirming care. Transgender Americans often face subtle discrimination, outright hostility and ill-informed medical professionals in their interactions with the health-care system, according to a poll by The Washington Post and KFF, a nonprofit focused on national health issues. (Nirappil and Van Houten, 3/24)
From Minnesota and Florida —
Minnesota Public Radio: 'You Belong Here': Minnesota House Passes Trans Health Refuge Bill
The Minnesota House of Representatives passed a bill early Friday by a vote of 68-62 that would prevent state courts or officials from complying with child removal requests, extraditions, arrests or subpoenas related to gender-affirming health care that a person receives in Minnesota. Physicians who practice gender-affirming care in Minnesota and families who’ve sought it out for their transgender children or teenagers said it would go a long way to ensure that they can continue to access treatment without fear of other states’ laws getting in the way. (Ferguson, 3/24)
ABC News: Florida Parents File Lawsuit Against State Transgender Youth Care Ban
Four Florida families filed a lawsuit Thursday in federal court against Florida's Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, Board of Medicine, and Board of Osteopathic Medicine, over the state ban against gender-affirming care for transgender youth. (Alfonseca, 3/24)
In global news —
Axios: World Athletics Bans Trans Women From Female Sports
The World Athletics Council voted Thursday to ban athletes who are transgender women "or who have Differences of Sexual Development" from competing in elite track and field competitions. The new rule follows similar bans on transgender athletes competing in elite women's competitions, including swimming. (Falconer, 3/24)
