Ohio Republican Gov. Mike DeWine on Friday signed an executive order banning gender reassignment surgery on minors.
“This ban takes effect immediately,” Ohio’s governor told reporters after signing the order.
A week ago, DeWine vetoed comprehensive legislation that would have banned doctors from prescribing hormones and puberty blockers to minors, as well as performing gender reassignment surgeries.
The legislation, House Bill 68, would also have banned transgender women from playing on high school and college sports teams consistent with their gender identity.
The governor argued that his veto “did not reflect one way or another” the other issues that House Bill 68 sought to address and that Ohio needed to “stay focused on the important issue.”
“There is a very broad consensus against surgeries for minors, so let’s put that in a law so we can move on and talk about other things,” DeWine said.
Ohio joins more than 20 other states that have enacted bans on gender reassignment surgery for minors since 2021.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s order prohibits gender reassignment surgeries on minors under the age of 18 in Ohio. AP
DeWine acknowledged that gender reassignment surgeries on minors are rare in the Buckeye State, but said his executive order ensures the controversial medical procedure will be eliminated.
“If you look at the evidence out there, there’s very little that that’s happening, but let’s make sure, and that’s what is happening,” he said.
DeWine also announced new rules that seek to collect data on the medical treatment of transgender people in Ohio and prevent fly-by-night operations that do not provide patients with mental health counseling.
“I am concerned that there may be small-time providers and clinics that are dispensing medications to adults without advice and without basic standards to ensure quality care,” she said.
“It’s clear that the most important part is mental health counseling,” DeWine added. “It has to be extensive and complete.”
Ohio joins more than 20 other states that have banned this controversial procedure from being performed on minors. AP
The rules will be open to a public comment period before being adopted.
The Republican-controlled Ohio General Assembly could override DeWine’s veto of House Bill 68 with a three-fifths majority vote.
Lawmakers plan to return early from their winter recess to vote on the override, according to the Ohio Capital Journal, but it’s unclear whether the body has the votes to do so.
“I have a job. They have a job. They do their job. I do my job,” DeWine said of a possible override vote.
“My job was to study this issue and decide whether to sign it. “As I said a week ago, for me to sign the bill, for this to become law in the state of Ohio, I will say that the government knows better, knows better than parents, about the health of their own children.”
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Source: vtt.edu.vn