The governor of Texas has banned medical aid for transgender minors, becoming the largest US state to restrict access to treatment for affected young people.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday signed into law a law prohibiting the provision of medical aid to transgender minors, further widening restrictions on access to treatment for young people in the United States.
Greg Abbott thus aligns himself with a position already adopted by the governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, also a Republican, who had enacted similar legislation in May.
Texas and Florida are the second and third most populous states in the United States.
An exception for minors already engaged
The law passed in Texas prohibits medical professionals from prescribing hormone-blocking drugs or performing surgery to alter the sexuality of anyone under the age of 18. It will come into force on September 1.
The legislation includes an exception for minor children already receiving hormone-blocking drugs or undergoing hormone therapy. But in this case it requires medical withdrawal over an appropriate period of time.
Democrats have denounced human rights abuses and on Friday the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas announced legal action against the new law.
LGBT youth more vulnerable to suicide
“Abbott can’t stop trans youth from thriving in Texas – and we’re going to sue him to make sure,” Governor Abbott said on Twitter.
A dozen American states led by a Republican have decided on restrictions against transgender minors. In March, Democratic President Joe Biden said such “attacks” on transgender rights were “un-American and must stop.”
According to a survey conducted for the Trevor Project, “LGBTQ youth are not more vulnerable to suicide because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, but rather at higher risk because of the way they are mistreated and stigmatized in society”.
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2023-06-03 20:13:00
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