Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
House Republicans Take Aim At Trans Sports Rights; Bill Will Die In Senate
NBC News: House Republicans Poised To Pass Transgender Sports Ban For Schools
The House is expected to pass legislation Thursday that would ban transgender women and girls from competing in female school athletics — the latest GOP salvo in the intensifying culture wars over transgender rights in America. The bill, authored by Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., would amend Title IX to bar schools that receive federal funding from allowing people “whose sex is male” to participate in sports designated for women or girls. (Wong, 4/20)
On LGBTQ+ health in Florida, North Carolina, Montana, and Iowa —
The Washington Post: Florida Bans Teaching About Gender Identity In All Public Schools
The Florida Board of Education has forbidden the teaching of gender identity and sexuality throughout all grades in K-12 public schools, extending a nearly year-old legislative ban on such lessons from kindergarten through third grade. The board voted Wednesday to adopt a rule that says Florida teachers in grades four through 12 “shall not intentionally provide classroom instruction … on sexual orientation or gender identity” unless this instruction is required by state academic standards — it is not — or the lessons form “part of a reproductive health course” from which a student’s parent can opt out their child. (Natanson, 4/19)
AP: North Carolina House Approves Ban On Transgender Athletes
Transgender girls in North Carolina would be prohibited from joining female sports teams in middle school, high school and college under legislation passed Wednesday by the Republican-controlled House in one of its first actions since attaining a supermajority earlier this month. The House approved legislation 73-39, with three Democrats voting in favor, to separate sports by biological sex, based solely on students’ “reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” Trans girls would not be allowed to play on any sports team that corresponds with their gender identity. Trans boys and cisgender girls could only play on teams designated for male athletes if there was no comparable girls’ team, except for wrestling. (Schoenbaum, 4/19)
The Hill: Montana GOP Caucus Calls For Censure Of Transgender Lawmaker
A group of Republicans in the Montana legislature have called for the immediate censure of Democratic Rep. Zooey Zephyr — the state’s first and only openly transgender legislator — after she told lawmakers on Tuesday that there will be “blood on your hands” if a bill to ban minors from accessing gender-affirming health care is approved by the state House. “If you are forcing a trans child to go through puberty when they are trans, that is tantamount to torture. This body should be ashamed,” Zephyr said Tuesday during a floor debate over amendments to Montana’s Senate Bill 99, a wide-reaching bill that would prevent medical professionals from administering gender-affirming health care to transgender youths under 18. (Migdon, 4/19)
Des Moines Register: Iowa GOP Bill Would Ban School Books With Sex, Restrict LGBTQ Teaching
Republicans in the Iowa House and Senate say they're nearing a deal on a major education bill that would limit instruction on gender identity and sexual orientation, remove school books with sex acts and give parents the fundamental right to make decisions for their child under 18. (Akin, 4/19)
Also —
CNN: Twitter Removes Transgender Protections From Hateful Conduct Policy
Twitter appears to have quietly rolled back a portion of its hateful conduct policy that included specific protections for transgender people. The policy previously stated that Twitter prohibits “targeting others with repeated slurs, tropes or other content that intends to degrade or reinforce negative or harmful stereotypes about a protected category. This includes targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.” But the second line was removed earlier this month, according to archived versions of the page from the WayBack Machine. (Duffy, 4/19)
