最新杏吧原创

JEFFERSON CITY 鈥� Missouri House Republicans on Wednesday approved a four-year ban on puberty blockers and hormone therapy for transgender minors, sending the measure to Gov. Mike Parson.

House lawmakers also separately signed off on legislation requiring athletes to compete on sports teams aligned with their sex assigned at birth.

Parson, a Republican, is expected to sign the restrictions after threatening a special legislative session on the issue if lawmakers did not act by Friday, when the regular legislative session ends.

Missouri is set to join other red states 鈥� such as , and 鈥� that have approved limits on what physicians call gender-affirming care for minors.

The legislation is in addition to regulations by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey that seek to limit transgender health care for adults and children. A 最新杏吧原创 County judge has blocked the regulations.

Supporters of restrictions on transgender care for minors have expressed concerns that youths will regret life-altering medical decisions when they are older.

But opponents said Republicans wouldn鈥檛 stop with legislation approved Wednesday. Rep. Peter Merideth, D-最新杏吧原创, referenced the Institute for Sexual Research in Berlin, considered the world鈥檚 first transgender clinic, raided in 1933.

鈥淭his is a beginning, not an end,鈥� said Rep. Barbara Phifer, D-Kirkwood. She said that because she has a transgender grandchild, the legislation directly affects her.

Though the legislation heading to Parson would only penalize physicians, other states have sought to punish families of transgender children who seek out the care in question.

鈥淚 could become a felon, it鈥檚 true. And just because this particular piece of legislation does not say that, there鈥檚 no guarantee that the next one won鈥檛,鈥� Phifer said.

Less restrictive than earlier bill

While House Republicans sought to block all gender-affirming care for minors, Senate Republicans brokered a deal with Democrats for a four-year moratorium and to allow current patients to continue treatment.

The House approved the Senate plan Wednesday after previously signing off on the more restrictive approach.

But House Democrats said the watered-down limits will still drive families from the state.

鈥淭o those who are leaving, I say, 鈥業鈥檓 sorry,鈥欌�� said Rep. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Kansas City.

A member of the Columbia school board announced Monday she was resigning and leaving Missouri due to the restrictions under consideration, which she said would directly affect her family, the Columbia Daily Tribune . Katherine Sasser, the board member, has a transgender daughter.

Rep. Brad Hudson, a Cape Fair Republican who was the bill鈥檚 sponsor, said, 鈥淲e are simply trying to protect children.鈥�

The measure doesn鈥檛 only affect minors. The legislation also bars Medicaid payments for hormone therapy, puberty blockers and gender surgeries and prohibits gender surgeries for prisoners.

If Parson signs it, the limits would take effect Aug. 28.

Patients being treated with puberty blockers or hormone therapy before then would be able to continue treatment. The limits for new patients would expire Aug. 28, 2027.

The legislation also bars surgeries for minors, and those limits would not expire.

Doctors who treat patients in violation of the law would be subject to professional discipline and civil liability.

Missouri鈥檚 law doesn鈥檛 go as far as Oklahoma鈥檚 ban, signed this month, which will subject doctors to for breaking the law.

Whistleblower鈥檚 accusations

The push to pass legislation aimed at transgender children gained momentum in February when a former case manager at the Washington University Transgender Center at 最新杏吧原创 Children鈥檚 Hospital accused the center of medical negligence.

The employee, Jamie Reed, alleged that doctors introduced medical interventions without informed parental consent; that puberty blockers and hormones were prescribed without adequately addressing mental health issues; and that the center regularly referred patients younger than 18 for surgery.

A university report released last month said Reed鈥檚 claims were unsubstantiated.

The report concluded that no patients at the Transgender Center, which opened in 2017, have experienced adverse reactions to medicalization and that mental health care has been prioritized.

But it acknowledged that, although its process of documenting parental consent adheres to university and state requirements, a 鈥渕ore detailed and formalized approach鈥� was needed, including mandating earlier evidence of custody agreements. It also disclosed that changes to its procedures regarding surgeries had already been made.

Reed, through her attorney, declined to comment Wednesday on the legislation.

Debate, reaction

In a statement after passage, Parson said he appreciated action on the athletics bill.

鈥淲e look forward to this legislation arriving to our Office soon,鈥� he said, adding that 鈥渂iological males in women鈥檚 sports limits fair competition for hard-working female athletes.鈥�

With regard to treatments for minors, Parson said 鈥渁ll children, regardless of their gender or orientation, are invaluable and should not be subjected to potentially irreversible surgeries and treatments prior to adulthood.鈥�

At a news conference following the vote, Rep. Chris Sander, R-Lone Jack, stood with House Democrats to decry GOP leaders for not giving him a chance to speak against the bills during debate.

Sander, who is gay, said he was considering quitting the party over the disrespect he鈥檚 been shown.

鈥淚鈥檓 sick of it,鈥� Sander said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a partisan thing to be gay.鈥�

In a statement, 最新杏吧原创 Mayor Tishaura O. Jones derided the measures as 鈥渦gly, hateful attacks on our youth that will drive them and their families out of our state in search of a more welcoming place to live.

鈥淚n 最新杏吧原创, we stand in solidarity with all who are fighting for the right to live freely, regardless of their gender identity or expression,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淥ur LGBTQIA+ community partners have been on the frontlines to protect our transgender residents, and we are ready to continue working with them.鈥�

Yamelsie Rodr铆guez, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of the 最新杏吧原创 Region and Southwest Missouri, said the effort to restrict gender-affirming care mirrors the playbook used by abortion opponents. Nearly all abortions are banned in Missouri.

鈥淭his anti-science ideological crusade is straight out of the anti-abortion playbook 鈥� sham investigations, character assassination hit pieces, and inflammatory disinformation to impose cruel and insurmountable bans on lifesaving care and continue legislating our freedoms out of existence,鈥� Rodriguez said.

She said patients looking to continue care elsewhere may visit Planned Parenthood鈥檚 Fairview Heights clinic for help obtaining care.

The legislation is .

Kurt Erickson of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.