Lawmakers in Minnesota on Thursday called for medical attention for transgender people, but designated the state as a “trans haven” for children who may be denied “gender-affirming care” in other states. submitted a bill to establish
The Minnesota House of Representatives passed HF 146 by Democratic-Farmer-Labor Rep. Lee Fink in a 68-62 intra-party vote. Finke is the state’s first transgender legislator.
Democrats who support the bill said the bill would make it legal for transgender people, their families, and health care workers to travel to Minnesota to get prescriptions for sex hormones and sex reassignment surgery. It states that it can prevent you from facing the repercussions. Similar laws have been introduced in California and other states with Democratic-controlled legislatures seeking to counter Republican states seeking to ban transgender procedures for minors.
“Gender-affirming care is life-saving health care,” Finke told reporters ahead of the bill’s debate. “Withholding or delaying gender-affirming care can have a dramatic impact on the mental health of individuals who need it. Dramatically higher in deficient transgender and gender augmented people.”
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On Thursday, March 23, 2023, in St. Paul, Minnesota, dozens of protesters voted for or against a bill that would make Minnesota a trans refugee state. (AP Photo/Trisha Ahmed)
HF146 prevents law enforcement from taking children away. custody By order from outside Minnesota.
This law allows children undergoing gender reassignment procedures permitted under Minnesota law to child protection law of another state. This is a direct response to neighboring South Dakota, where Republican Gov. Christy Noem signed into law banning puberty blockers, heterosexual hormone therapy, and sex reassignment surgery for transgender individuals under the age of 18.
Advocates for transgender people say denying transgender youth “gender-affirming care” harms marginalized groups who are already at high risk of suicide.
“The protections outlined in HF 146 are essential for health care providers to be able to continue providing gender-affirming care to their patients in line with best practices without fear of interference or punishment from other states.” gender justice. “Parents face the impossible decision of staying home and risking the health and safety of their children or uprooting their lives and moving out, often at great personal cost. If the family moves to Minnesota, they and their children will be protected under the law.”
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Minnesota Representative Lee Fink, Democrat from St. Paul, speaks at a press conference at the State Capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota, Thursday, March 23, 2023. Minnesota is promoting gender-affirming care by making itself a “trans-protection state” in opposition to conservative states who say such care is life-changing and harmful to children. We are working to strengthen state protections for seeking children and their families. (AP Photo/Steve Kanowski)
But conservative groups and family law attorneys have warned that the law is written to give Minnesota parents the possibility of losing custody of their children if they refuse to care for transgender people.
“The most insidious aspect of the bill is that children who are denied ‘gender-affirming care’ (defined as everything from treatment to hormone-blocking drugs to transitional surgery) are treated as ‘children in need’. “provides “protection or services” of protection or services in Minnesota so that the court can obtain “emergency custody” of a child,” said a lawyer with more than 30 years of experience in family and juvenile courts. said Bob Robbie, a Minnesota licensed attorney with experience in
Robbie has studied HF 146 extensively in preparation for testifying before the legislative committee. He said the way the bill was written would undermine a law intended to protect transgender children by classifying them as abusers who are denied care.
“This kind of court power has a long precedent for keeping children safe in Minnesota. If a child is in danger of being harmed by a parent or guardian, the state can remove the child and put the child in harm’s way.” Without this, there is no way to protect children in such situations,” Roby told Fox News Digital in an email. It is clearly unfair to add children who are denied ‘gender-affirming care’ to the definition of children in need of urgent action.”
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Protesters have voted for or against a bill to make Minnesota a trans refugee state, held signs to strengthen protections for children and their families who come to the state for gender-affirming care, and voted in Congress. Lawmakers outside the room voting on a bill at the State Capitol in St. Paul, Minnesota, Thursday, March 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Trisha Ahmed)
Robbie said the court did not recognize the rights of parents or other rights whose children were being abused. criticized.
Renee Carlson, general counsel for True North Legal, a legal initiative of the Minnesota Family Council, said the bill would “deprive parents of their basic rights, ignore their informed consent, and encourage young people to , will cause confusion and increase litigation in the courts.” They are children on a dangerous path to lifelong serious biological and medical consequences. ”
The transgender issue is highly controversial and there are strong feelings on both sides. Dozens of people yelled, “Vote NO!” Others yelled back, “Vote yes!” It held a sign in baby blue and pink, the colors of the transgender flag, that read, “You are here.”
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Whether gender-affirming care is right for minors has become a major flashpoint in culture wars across the country. Georgia Gov. and Republican Brian Kemp signed the ban on Thursday. Another Republican, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, did so Wednesday. The Missouri Senate provisionally approved the ban on Tuesday. Bans were previously enacted in South Dakota, Utah and Mississippi.
A “trans haven” bill that seeks to counteract these efforts is now headed for the Minnesota state Senate, where the Democrats hold a one-seat majority. A similar bill awaits further action there after receiving public hearings last month. Her Apple Valley Sen. Erin Maye Quade, the Senate’s lead author, told The Associated Press that she expects a vote in Congress soon.
Timothy Nerozzi of the Associated Press and Fox News contributed to this report.
