On Thursday, four Florida families filed a lawsuit against the state’s Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, the Board of Medicine, and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine. The lawsuit challenges the recent ban Florida implemented on gender-affirming healthcare for transgender minors.
The ban in question prohibits individuals under 18 from accessing puberty blockers, hormones, cross-hormone therapy, and gender-affirming surgery. However, the ban does not apply to young people who were already being prescribed these medications before the law went into effect. This means those individuals will still be allowed to receive treatment without any restrictions.
The families involved in the lawsuit have children who are transgender and would be affected by the limitations imposed by the ban. Additionally, the families have expressed concern about the potential negative impact on their children’s mental and physical well-being.
“Like most parents, my husband and I want nothing more than for our daughter to be healthy, happy, and safe,” one family said. “Being able to consult with our team of doctors to understand what our daughter is experiencing and make the best, most informed decisions about her care has been critically important for our family. This ban takes away our right to provide her with the next step in her recommended treatment when she reaches puberty.”
“This ban puts me and other Florida parents in the nightmare position of not being able to help our child when they need us most,” another family added. “My son has a right to receive appropriate, evidence-based medical care … That has been ripped away by this cruel and discriminatory rule.”
Gender-affirming care has been a major issue in the states. Currently, there are eight states that have adopted laws and policies that restricts gender-affirming care for minors.
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