14-Year-Old Transgender Teen’s Life-Changing Treatment Banned in North Carolina

By | November 10, 2023

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Accident – Death – Obituary News : North Carolina has recently enacted a law that bans gender-affirming medical care for anyone under 18, regardless of their doctor’s advice and parents’ consent. House Bill 808 became law after the General Assembly’s GOP majority overturned Governor Roy Cooper’s veto in August. The law prohibits state funds and Medicaid dollars from being used for such care and imposes civil penalties on doctors providing it. This law has caused confusion and fear among families and doctors who treat transgender youth in the state.

The law’s language states that medical professionals can continue or complete a course of treatment for a minor if it commenced before August 1, 2023, and is still active at that date, and if it is in the minor’s best interest and their parents or guardians consent to it. However, the law does not specify what qualifies as a “course of treatment” having commenced. This lack of clarity has caused concern and uncertainty among families and doctors.

To navigate this ambiguity, some families are seeking to expedite their children’s hormone treatment so that medical records reflect that it had already begun before the law took effect. However, not all families have been able to do so, raising concerns about the access to care for transgender youth in the state.

In response to the law, transgender patients, their families, and doctors have filed a federal lawsuit, arguing that it bars transgender patients from treatments and procedures widely available to cisgender patients of all ages. They argue that gender-affirming care is medically necessary, safe, effective, and supported by major medical organizations in the US.

The law’s impact extends beyond physical health. Transgender youth who are unable to access gender-affirming care may face greater mental health challenges, higher rates of suicide, and a more challenging transition later in life. Early intervention with puberty blockers and hormone therapy can alleviate distress and potentially reduce the need for extensive gender-affirming surgeries in the future.

The law’s passage reflects a broader assault on LGBTQ+ rights in North Carolina. It comes after a legislative session that featured several attacks on LGBTQ+ people and their allies. The law’s opponents argue that it is an intrusion into the doctor-patient relationship and overrides the decisions of families and their doctors.

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The law has created confusion and fear among doctors who work with transgender patients, with some declining to comment on the record due to threats of violence and fear of political retaliation. It has also raised concerns among patients who may receive conflicting information on whether they can continue medically necessary care.

Overall, the law’s ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth in North Carolina has significant implications for their physical and mental well-being. Advocates are calling for the repeal of the law and for healthcare providers to be able to offer evidence-based care to their transgender patients, as they do for other patients..

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