Legislation to prohibit gender-affirming care advances following comprehensive approval by the Wyoming Senate
Wyoming may implement a prohibition on the majority of gender-affirming medical treatments during this year’s legislative session.
This follows a previous bill that was not filed in the House of Representatives and subsequently did not pass.
The law would have solely prohibited gender-affirming procedures in Wyoming. The legislation did not specify penalties for doctors and did not prohibit other gender-affirming treatments such as hormone blockers.
The bill known as “Chloe’s Law” has both of those principles in its language as it progresses.
Senator Anthony Bouchard (R-Cheyenne) is the legislator responsible for the bill. He disagreed with the consensus among medical groups and research findings that advocate for gender-affirming care to support transgender children dealing with depression, suicidal thoughts, and self-harm.
Bouchard stated that this is a legitimate medical treatment. I dissent from their viewpoint. I disagree. This is experimental medicine.
Sara Burlingame serves as the executive director of Wyoming Equality, a charity that supports LGBTQ+ individuals in the state.
Burlingame stated that he is discussing with families how complex and thoughtful debates are sometimes oversimplified to label them as horrible parents or bad individuals. “It has a significant impact.”
She stated that the rhetoric promoted by MPs such as Bouchard against trans adolescents and their families can cause significant harm.
“We are inundated with language implying that individuals seeking optimal medical treatment for their children are considered deviant and immoral,” Burlingame stated.
Bouchard expects that his prohibition may encounter challenges once it reaches the House.
“I believe there are many Republicans who should consider joining the Democratic party,” he stated.
“Chloe’s Law” passed a third reading in the Senate with overwhelming favor by a vote of 26 to 5. The bill will proceed to the House and must undergo three readings before being delivered to the Governor’s desk.
