Public Statement 4/9/20

Public Statement on the Arkansas Legislature’s Attack on Trans Lives

The Arkansas legislature’s decision to override Governor Asa Hutchinson’s veto of a bill outlawing gender-affirming treatment for minors is a direct attack on trans lives. This sinister and violent law will force transgender children seeking gender-affirming care in Arkansas to experience irreversible changes to their bodies that will increase their gender dysphoria and chance of suicidal ideation. With trans adolescents already more likely to attempt suicide than their cisgender peers, the Arkansas state legislature will most definitely have blood on its hands.

Gender-affirming care for minors is not an experiment. It is not reckless. It is lifesaving—and we have the research to prove it. Both the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Endocrine Society recommend the use of hormone therapy to delay puberty and encourage physical development that matches a child’s gender identity. Politicians informed solely by bigotry and hate have no right to debate a human being’s agency over any aspect of their identity or expression.

This is not Arkansas’s problem alone.

This year, state legislatures across the country, including Ohio’s, have introduced 82 anti-transgender bills – the highest in U.S. history. This shameful milestone is a reminder that the fight to protect trans lives is far from finished.

While the fight continues, Equitas Health remains dedicated to providing culturally humble and patient-centered gender-affirming care. Furthermore, Equitas Health is committed to any effort, which prevents legislation that threatens transgender lives from becoming law.