Ohio bans gender-affirming care, restricts transgender athletes despite veto

Ohio bans gender-affirming care and restricts transgender athletes despite GOP governor’s veto

Updated: 5:37 PM EST Jan 24, 2024

*** major ruling came down this week on whether Children can get gender affirming health care. *** federal judge has weighed in and the ruling could have far reaching consequences. The state plans to appeal the decision that struck down Arkansas’s ban on gender affirming treatment for transgender youth. In the Tuesday ruling, Judge James Moody said the states save adolescents from experimental Act violated the US Constitution and that the 2021 law cannot be enforced by Arkansas officials. The now backed law blocked law banned access to puberty blockers. *** treatment used to prevent the onset of puberty. It also banned cross hormone therapy *** treatment that allows trans people to change their physical appearance to be more consistent with their gender identities. I would say with 100% certainty that if I hadn’t had this care, I probably would not be here today or at least in such *** good stable mental state Attorney General, Tim Griffin says Arkansas plans to appeal this ruling. Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed *** bill making it easier to sue doctors who provide gender affirming care for Children. This law would have prevented doctors from providing gender affirming hormone treatment or surgery to anyone under 18. Supporters of the ban argued that it would protect children’s bodies and safeguard medical ethics. *** federal judge ruled that the Arkansas ban violates the due process and equal protection, rights of trans youth and families and argued that it also violates the First amendment rights, *** medical provider. Saying, quote, the evidence showed that the prohibited medical care improves the mental health and well being of patients. And that by prohibiting it, the state undermined the interests. It claims to be advancing. At least 17 other states have similar laws. Nearly all have been challenged in court. This new ruling may now set *** precedent nationwide. I hope other states that try um to pass fans like this, recognize that and maybe take *** step back. His ruling is pretty clear. The ban was also criticized by medical groups and the AC Lu which responded to the ruling saying, quote, fear mongering and misinformation about this health care do not hold up to scrutiny. *** law professor says the law never went into effect due to *** preliminary injunction, the court put in place and that made it illegal for the state to enforce the law. He says the case reaching *** court trial was also *** big deal. This is *** very significant issue legally and morally and politically. So regardless of what way the court was going to go, this was going to get *** lot of attention. Second. This is the first case in the United States that has reached this final proceeding at the trial court level. And he says he is not surprised by Moody’s ruling following the evidence the plaintiffs provided at the trial. According to the Human rights campaign foundation, 19 other states have enacted similar laws including Oklahoma. Seven other states are considering legislation banning gender affirming care for minors. Besides Arkansas, federal judges have also blocked those bans in Alabama and Indiana. Well, coming up next on 40 29 on the record, we sit down with the Senate President pro about the judge’s ruling and why lawmakers felt the need to pass the legislation in the first place. Parents are on board to abuse and mutilate their Children. And in Arkansas, we just said we’re not going to allow that. We’re not going to allow you to neuter *** 13 year old boy or do *** double mastectomy to *** 14 year old young lady when they become adults, they have the right to do those things themselves, but we’re not going to allow it as Children. Her interview with Senator Hester. Coming up. Welcome back to 40 29 on the record. We are talking about the latest on the Safe Act. An Arkansas judge has struck down the country’s first ban on gender affirming care for Children saying it’s unconstitutional. The Arkansas law passed by the General Assembly would have prevented doctors from providing gender affirming hormone treatment or surgery to anyone under 18. Senator Tim has *** Republican is here to talk to us about the Safe Act. Senator. Thank you so much for talking to us today on 40 29 on the record. At least 17 other states have similar laws. Uh, and then nearly all have been challenged in court. So tell us, walk us through the point of, uh, right now and how we got here, we look across the country and, and in the state of Arkansas and we have *** continued mu movement, you know, to mu mutilate our Children, parents are on board to abuse and mutilate their Children. And, and in Arkansas, we just said, we’re not going to allow that right. We’re not gonna allow you to neuter *** 13 year old boy or do *** double mastectomy to *** 14 year old uh young lady. Uh when they become adults, they have the right to do that, those things themselves, but we’re not going to allow it as Children. What about the hormone treatments? Well, look what we know about the hormone treatments is, we don’t know what the long term uh reactions are other than they are bad, right? When you, when you want to do hormone treatments from 13 or 14 or 15 years old, then you become 19 or 20 you wanna have *** baby, we’re seeing that, that there are long term consequences now that you can’t have *** child because uh you are going through *** phase as *** young adult or as *** young, as ***, as ***, as *** teenager. And what every everyone can agree with when you are 12, 13, 14, 15, you are not making good long term life choices. No one is you don’t have the ability to do that. Uh That’s why we should not do things that are long term affected. Now, talk to us about the 94th General Assembly, this, uh I believe it was passed pretty easily. Uh Talk to us about the discussion that the lawmakers were talking about when you passed this legislation in the first place. Well, in this session, we’re talking about what can we do, right? We, we understand that uh some liberal activist judges aren’t with us, but what can we do and what we’ve told, uh decided now is if you go under these treatments as *** young child, um uh or as *** teenager and you become an adult and they have affected you negatively, you have the right to sue that doctor or that therapist or that pharmacist, uh that put these drugs in you. Um And it, regardless of, of what your parent and you want to say, we are saying that we do not allow child abuse in Arkansas. Uh even if *** parent wants to abuse the child, we’re not going to allow it. We’re gonna protect our kids in Arkansas and with the lawmakers, you know, passing this legislation. Uh Both of them, I guess as the governor has already signed that bill making it easier to sue doctors who provided gender or family care for Children. Um What do you tell the parents of kids who believe that they are transgender? And they say that this is the only way for them to have *** mental health and for them to be stable. I would say telling *** child and reaffirming *** lie to *** child is not loving or not helpful. You know how, how to show *** child that you love them and care for them. Tell them the truth, the truth is *** boy is not *** girl. And if you tell *** boy that he’s *** girl, they’re gonna be struggling their whole life. Uh All kids go through phases, all kids struggle with different things. Um but telling them an absolute lie is not loving or caring for that child. Now with *** lot of uh this is pride month and there is *** lot of push from both sides of the aisle. People saying that you know, there are transgender rights is *** civil rights issue. And then on the other side, there are families and lawmakers are saying that this is about protecting Children. So can you kind of present the side from where you’re coming from that this is about the Children, keeping them safe and not about the other side. Look when, when you, when you are 18 years old, you can choose to do about whatever you want with your body. You can, uh, choose to, uh, if you’re *** man, you can dress in *** dress and call yourself *** woman. You can do whatever you want at 18 years old. But as *** child, um, you could even, you could dress, uh, against your current gender. Um, um, but the reality is you cannot go through long term changes as *** child. I believe 100% that, that is child abuse. We should not be doing it. We will continue to protect the Children. Um And we do that in *** lot of areas of, of, of the state of Arkansas right across the country. We make people wear seat belts. Uh We don’t allow Children to buy cigarettes or to uh or to uh buy alcohol, but we want to say that they can neuter themselves. I mean, it’s just insane now to the constituents who do protect or who do believe in the safe act and protecting the Children, as you say, what are they telling you? What are their concerns? The concerns are where we’re gonna be *** society in 10 or 15 years from now. What you see all across the country and in the United States of America, people that made these choices at chi as Children regret them, uh their life satisfactory suicide rates go up dramatically. Um We see that there are horrible long term effects when the, when, when Children are affirmed in this, in this way. Um, and so again, I will continue to push back with the way to love *** child. Uh, is to not tell them that *** lie is truth just to tell them that truth is truth. And Senator, what’s happening next with The Safe Act, um, is the Attorney General’s office, uh, appealing it or what is that process? Uh, I’m not exactly sure where the Attorney General is on this but I, uh, on this particular, uh, act, but I, I know that they’ll continue to stick up for what the legislature says because the legislature is representing the vast majority of Arkansans. And this is an issue. It doesn’t matter if you’re *** Democrat, if you’re *** Republican, almost *** vast majority, I would guess way more than 90% of Ark Kansans do not want our Children being mutilated as Children. Senator Bar Hester of the Arkansas Senate. Thank you so much for joining us today on 40 29 on the record.