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Republicans Target Transgender People In Latest Tennessee Bill — Aims To Restrict Health Care For Trans Adults
Lawmakers want to restrict gender-affirming health care for minors and adults, including hormone therapy, medications, and surgeries.
Republican state Sen. Jack Johnson opened the discussion on a bill he’s co-sponsoring. Washington Post reports that the bill would limit gender-affirming care such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and gender surgeries for minors.
Johnson is also backing another bill, HB1215, that would cut off access to gender-affirming care for low-income people, including adults. If this bill passes, it will prohibit Tennesee’s Medicaid program from working with insurance companies to fund gender-affirming care.
“Let’s put children first and look out for them first and let them make those decisions as adults,” he said. “I support your right to do so when you’re an adult, not when you’re a child, and you do not have the mental capacity to do so.”
In the past few months, Republican lawmakers introduced legislation limiting gender-affirming care for adults. Previously, the laws and bans applied to children and teens. Most of the restrictions on transition-related health care…
