The West Virginia legislature passed a ban on sex change surgeries, cross sex hormones, and puberty blockers with exceptions for patients at significant “suicide risk” Saturday. Senate Majority Leader Tom Takubo, a Republican, urged the changes to the original bill, which allows exemptions to the bill’s ban on transgender treatments for minors if the child is at significant risk of suicide. Takubo cited claims that suicide and suicidal ideation significantly reduces for minors who experience gender dysphoria and receive “gender-reassignment” treatments. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) funded a study released in January which claimed to find that cross-sex hormones drastically improved patient’s mental health, despite multiple patient suicides. Other studies have shown that easier access to puberty blockers and transgender hormones is connected to rising teen suicides.

Source: ABC News March 13, 2023 02:17 UTC