A bill banning medical treatment of transgender youth — and allowing the state to take custody of them — is on its way to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk after passing the Florida Senate on May 4.
SB 254, which was introduced by FL Sen. Clay Yarborough (R), passed 26-13. It passed the House of Representatives 83-28.
The bill grants Florida courts “temporary emergency jurisdiction” for children younger than 18 who have been “subjected to or threatened with being subjected to sex reassignment prescriptions or procedures.” The state could take physical custody of the child, calling the treatment of gender dysphoria “serious physical harm.”
In addition, there are impacts on transgender adults, as the bill also prohibits use of state funds, including state insurance programs, for “sex-reassignment prescriptions or procedures.” Meanwhile, this week Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed a bill requiring Medicaid to cover gender-affirming treatment.
Should DeSantis sign the bill, it would go into effect immediately.
“Equitable access to healthcare is a basic human right, yet the passage of SB 254 further codifies and sanctions discrimination against our already marginalized transgender and gender diverse community,” Nic Zantop, the deputy director of TransInclusive, told SFGN. “In a state touted by the governor as the freest in the nation, gender identity should never be a determining factor in who deserves access to essential healthcare. Legislation can never erase trans existence.”
Planned Parenthood of South, East and North Florida tweeted, “We proudly stand with our trans patients and will continue to prioritize their health.” Until the bill is signed by the governor, patients can still receive treatment through the organization’s centers.
“It’s an assault on medical freedom and the freedom to parent,” Jon Harris Maurer, Equality Florida’s public policy director, said in a press release. “After weaponizing the state’s Medicaid agency and Board of Medicine against the transgender community, the governor’s surrogates have now rammed through legislation to override parental decision making, jail Florida doctors following best practices, and force adults to jump through government hoops to access their daily medication.”
The war against transgender healthcare in Florida began last summer when the Department of Health called on the Florida Board of Medicine to create guidelines for treatment of gender dysphoria in youth. After multiple meetings, the board voted unanimously in February in just 10 minutes to ban hormone therapy, puberty blockers, and surgeries for transgender youth. The following month, doctors risked their medical license for providing treatment. At that time, patients who had already received treatment were exempt from the ban.
