Key Points
- Seven states have cracked down in 2022 on cross-sex medical procedures for children, such as puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries.
- Alabama, Arizona, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Oklahoma banned medical transitions for minors in 2022, joining a handful of states which had already done so.
- Advocates of these procedures claim they are linked to better mental health outcomes for children with gender identity issues, but the research supporting that point is weak.
- “The current standards set by numerous professional organizations appear to follow a preferred political ideology instead of the highest level of generally accepted medical science. Florida must do more to protect children from politics-based medicine. Otherwise, children and adolescents in our state will continue to face a substantial risk of long-term harm,” a letter from the Florida Department of Health read.
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