Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed an executive order Friday banning gender reassignment surgery for minors.
“This ban is effective immediately,” the Ohio governor told reporters after signing the order.
A week ago, Mr. DeWine vetoed a sweeping bill that would have prohibited doctors from prescribing hormones, puberty blockers, and performing gender reassignment surgeries on minors.
House Bill 68 would also ban transgender women from playing on high school or college sports teams based on their gender identity.
The governor said his veto “doesn't in any way reflect” the other issues House Bill 68 seeks to address and argued that Ohio needs to “stay focused on the issues that matter.”
“There's a broad consensus against surgery on minors, so let's put that into law so we can move on and talk about other things,” DeWine said.
ohio joins more than 20 other states A law has been enacted to ban gender reassignment surgery on minors starting in 2021.
DeWine acknowledged that gender reassignment surgery on minors is rare in the Buckeye State, but said the executive order would ensure the end of the controversial medical procedure.
“If you look at what evidence is out there, it's very unlikely that that's happening, but let's check. Let's see what this is doing,” he said. Told.
DeWine also announced new rules aimed at preventing “night-flying” operations that collect data on transgender medical care in Ohio and do not provide mental health counseling to patients.
“We are concerned that there may be overnight providers and clinics that prescribe medications to adults without counseling or basic standards to ensure quality care,” he said.
“It's clear that the most important part is the mental health counseling,” DeWine added. “It has to be long and comprehensive.”
The regulations will undergo a period of public comment before being adopted.
The Republican-controlled Ohio General Assembly could override DeWine's veto of House Bill 68 with a three-fifths majority.
Lawmakers plan to return early from their winter break to vote on the repeal, but it's unclear whether they have the votes to do so, according to the Ohio Capital Journal.
“There's a job. They have a job. They do their job. I'm doing my job,” DeWine said of the possibility of invalidated votes.
“My job was to study this issue and decide whether to sign it or not. As I said a week ago, for me to sign this bill and for it to become law in the state of Ohio, , I'm going to say that the government knows best about the health of their children, better than their parents.”
