Missouri bans gender-affirming care for minors, some adults

Missouri’s Republican governor on Wednesday signed into law two bills critics say will “persecute and vilify transgender children.”

Gov. Mike Parson signed Senate Bill 49, which bans gender-affirming care for minors and some adults in the state, as well as Senate Bill 39, which prohibits trans women and girls from competing on female sports teams.

His signature also came during the first week of Pride Month, when communities across the nation take to the streets to celebrate LGBTQ equality.

Under SB 49, health providers will are no longer allowed to prescribe or administer hormone therapy or puberty-blocking drugs to minors, unless that minor was receiving such care prior to Aug. 28, 2023. The legislation also bans gender-transition surgeries on anyone under 18, though such cases are extremely rare.

Gender-affirming surgeries for people who are incarcerated have also been outlawed under the new law, and Medicaid will no longer cover gender-affirming treatments.

Violation of the provisions can lead to the loss of a medical professional’s license.

The bill “denies the humanity and identity of transgender children,” the Missouri House Democratic Caucus said in a statement last month, slamming it as “bigotry,” “discrimination” and “hate.”

[ Missouri GOP passes bans on gender-affirming care, trans athletes with bills that ‘vilify and persecute’ trans children ]

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The other piece of anti-trans legislation signed Wednesday prohibits trans women and girls from competing in women’s sports in both public and private schools, including colleges. Institutions that violate the law could lose all state funding.

Parson said in a statement he signed the two bills “to protect Missouri children and female sports.”

“Women and girls deserve and have fought for an equal opportunity to succeed, and we stand up to the nonsense and stand with them as they take back their sport competitions,” he said. “In Missouri, we support real fairness, not injustice disguised as social righteousness.”

However, opponents say he signed the bills “to persecute transgender children.”

“The governor had a chance to protect innocent families who are just trying to live their lives in peace,” House Minority Floor Leader Crystal Quade said in a statement. “Instead he chose to persecute them.”

“History tends to reflect poorly on oppression and the oppressors, and the stain of this action will not wash away,” the Springfield Democrat added.

On Tuesday, the Human Rights Campaign issued its first-ever state of emergency for LGBTQ people in response to an unprecedented number of new laws restricting the rights of queer and trans people across the nation.