Federal Court upholds Kentucky and Tennessee bans on sex-change surgeries/treatments for minors

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – The US Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals last week upheld legislation passed by Tennessee and Kentucky which bans sex-change surgeries and gender hormonal treatments, including “experimental” procedures for minors aged 17 and under, CBN News reports. In its September 28 ruling, the federal court reversed a preliminary injunction issued by a lower court which had prevented the legislation from taking effect.

Kentucky’s Under SB 150 bill bans experimental gender procedures, including genital-mutilating surgeries for minors, and permits civil lawsuits against healthcare providers until that minor reaches the age of 30, CBN reports.

Tennessee’s SB 1 legislation, bans puberty blockers, hormones, and sex-change surgeries for minors, CBN reports. The law permits civil lawsuits against healthcare providers until 30 years after the minor reaches 18 years of age.

In its 2-1 ruling, the Court of Appeals explained; “In addition to sharing a border, Kentucky and Tennessee share an interest in regulating the medical treatments offered to children suffering from gender dysphoria. Tennessee was the first of the two States to regulate the treatments. State governments have an abiding interest ‘in protecting the integrity and ethics of the medical profession’…and ‘preserving and promoting the welfare of the child.”

“No one in these consolidated cases debates the existence of gender dysphoria or the distress caused by it. And no one doubts the value of providing psychological and related care to children facing it,” the Court said. “The question is whether certain additional treatments—puberty blockers, hormone treatments, and surgeries—should be added to the mix of treatments available to those age 17 and under.”

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