Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Colorado Law Banning Conversion Therapy For LGBTQ+ Kids Struck Down
Politico: Supreme Court Strikes Down Conversion Therapy Ban
States can’t ban so-called conversion therapy, aimed at changing a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity, the Supreme Court has ruled. The justices ruled, 8-1, Tuesday that the First Amendment prohibits states from using their licensing power to limit the topics therapists and other professionals can discuss with their clients. “The First Amendment stands as a shield against any effort to enforce orthodoxy in thought or speech in this country,” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the court’s majority. (Gerstein, 3/31)
New Hampshire Public Radio: NH’s Conversation Therapy Ban In Doubt Following Supreme Court Ruling Striking Down Colorado Law
A New Hampshire law that bans the practice of so-called “conversion therapy” for minors could be in doubt, following a decision by the Supreme Court Tuesday that found a similar law in Colorado is a violation of free speech. (Richardson, 3/31)
The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer: Ohio Bill Pressing For Statewide Conversion Therapy Ban Faces New Obstacles After SCOTUS Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling against Colorado’s ban on “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ youth makes an already uphill battle to outlaw the practice in Ohio even steeper, Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio said. (McGowan, 3/31)
More news about LGBTQ+ health —
KTVB.com: Idaho Enacts Strictest Bathroom Law In The Nation Requiring Separation By 'Opposite Sex'
Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed an extensive bathroom ban into law on Tuesday afternoon, one that will create the strictest guidelines for bathroom use in the nation. House Bill 752 criminalizes any person who "knowingly and willfully" enters a bathroom, locker room or changing room that does not align with their sex assigned at birth. A misdemeanor first offense means up to a year in jail. Upon second offense, that person could spend five years behind bars. Three other states in the country – Florida, Kansas and Utah – have criminal penalties for transgender people who use bathrooms that align with their gender identity, according to the LGBTQ+ advocacy group Movement Advancement Project's map tracking these bills. But only Idaho's legislation covers any "place of public accommodation,” including private businesses. (Johnston, 3/31)
Idaho Capital Sun: Idaho Legislature Passes Bill To Force Teachers, Doctors To Out Transgender Minors To Their Parents
The Idaho Senate widely passed a bill Monday that would require teachers and doctors to out transgender minors to their parents, or face lawsuits, advancing the bill to the governor. House Bill 822 would require schools, health care providers and child care providers to notify parents within three days after the entities receive “any request by the minor student to participate in or facilitate the social transition of the minor student.”(Pfannenstiel, 3/30)
Wisconsin Examiner: Evers Vetoes GOP Transgender Bills For Not Upholding ‘Our Wisconsin Values’
Gov. Tony Evers vetoed Republican bills Tuesday that would have placed new prohibitions in state statute related to transgender children, including banning them from sports teams that align with their gender identity, barring them from choosing the name and pronouns used for them in school and from accessing gender affirming medical care. (Spears, 3/31)
Topeka Capital-Journal: Transgender Activist Defies Law By Using Kansas Statehouse Bathroom
A national transgender activist has defied the state's new transgender bathroom ban by using a female restroom at the Kansas Statehouse. Samantha Boucher, who lives in Colorado and is the executive director of Trans Liberty, used a second-floor bathroom at the Capitol in Topeka in protest of Senate Bill 244. Boucher described it as an act of civil disobedience. (Alatidd and Saldanha-Olson, 3/31)
The Boston Globe: ‘No Longer Eligible’: Inside The Lives Upended By Trump’s Transgender Military Ban
The Globe followed three service members with a combined 54 years of military service, as their identities were upended by the ban. (Yarvis, 3/31)
