Republican Gov. Mike DeWine in Ohio vetoed a bill Friday that would have banned gender-affirming care for children and barred trans athletes from competing in women’s sports.
GOP leaders hold enough seats to override DeWine´s veto, but it’s not clear whether or when they would do so.
‘The consequences of this bill could not be more profound. Ultimately, I believe this is about protecting human life,’ DeWine said Friday during a news conference.
‘Many parents have told me that their child would not have survived, would be dead today, if they had not received the treatment they received from one of Ohio’s children’s hospitals,’ he added.
Hundreds of opponents testified against Ohio´s House Bill 68, that could have banned access to gender-affirming treatment and prevented transgender student-athletes from girls and women’s sports.
Republican Gov. Mike DeWine in Ohio vetoed a bill Friday that would have banned gender-affirming care for children and barred trans athletes from competing in women’s sports
Hundreds of opponents testified against Ohio´s House Bill 68, that could have banned access to gender-affirming treatment and prevented transgender student-athletes from girls and women’s sports
GOP leaders hold enough seats to override DeWine´s veto, but it’s not clear whether or when they would do so
Opponents include medical and mental health providers, education professionals, faith leaders, parents of transgender children and transgender individuals themselves.
They decried the legislation as cruel, life threatening to transgender youth and based on fearmongering rather than science.
The Legislature approved the bill earlier this month with only Republican support, prohibiting Ohio minors from taking puberty blockers and undergoing other hormone therapies or receiving gender reassignment surgery.
It would, however, have allowed any minor who is an Ohio resident to continue treatment they are currently receiving.
DeWine´s veto departs from a nationwide trend toward passing such laws, as more than 20 states have enacted laws restricting or banning such treatments,
Most of those states face lawsuits, but courts have issued mixed rulings.
The bill also would have required public K-12 schools and universities to designate separate teams for male and female sexes, and banned transgender girls and women from participating in sports that align with their gender identity.
DeWine´s veto departs from a nationwide trend toward passing such laws, as more than 20 states have enacted laws restricting or banning such treatments
State law bans transgender students from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity in 23 states, according to the Movement Advancement Projects
The Human Rights Campaign says that 22 states so far have banned access to gender-affirming care
Supporters argued that banning transgender athletes from girls and women´s sports maintains the integrity of those sports and ensures fairness.
Ohio’s House of Representatives and Senate, controlled by Republicans, could still override the governor’s veto, but DeWine said he hopes to work with lawmakers on the issue.
‘I truly believe that we can collaborate, find common ground and adopt rules to protect Ohio children, adults and families in this area,’ DeWine said.
‘Were I to sign House Bill 68, were House Bill 68 to become law, Ohio would be saying that the state, that the government, knows better what is medically best for a child than the two people who love that child the most: the parents,’ he added.
Last week, the governor said he visited children’s hospitals in Akron, Cincinnati and Columbus in an interview with the Associated Press.
‘I’m trying to learn as much as I can to make a good decision. We’re dealing with children who are going through a challenging time, families that are going through a challenging time. I want, the best I can, to get it right,’ he said.
Astrid Burkle, aged 10, told ABC News she is worried about ‘mean’ people blocking her healthcare
Astrid Burkle, aged 10, is seen with her sister Abs, mother Alicia and father Aaron
Aaron Burkle and his wife Alicia says they are considering moving away from Ohio if DeWine approves the bill
One of the worried families was the Burkles, who said they were angry towards the ‘mean’ people seeking to prevent the treatments.
Astrid Burkle, a ten-year-old transgender girl told ABC News: ‘It’s been really frustrating at times. Because there’s just so many people out there who are just really mean.’
Her mother, Alicia Burkle, said that while her daughter was currently too young to have surgery, she was receiving extensive therapy and mental health care, and was concerned that Ohio could ban more significant treatment such as puberty blockers before her daughter was old enough to receive it.
Aaron Burkle, her father, said their local community has been supportive, but her sister Abs said they may leave Ohio if trans treatment for minors is blocked.
‘We want to be able to support our communities and the state of Ohio, but like, people are going to leave,’ said Abs Burkle. ‘People are going to be hurt. They’re not going to want to come back to Ohio.’
Alicia Burkle agreed with her daughter and said they would move if they had to.
‘Just because you’ve said that you’re not going to allow us to get the care here in Ohio doesn’t mean we’re suddenly going to stop getting the care for our kids,’ said Alicia Burkle.
‘We trust the science, we trust her healthcare providers. And so we’re going to do what we have to do and whether that is travel out of state to get it, whether it’s leave the state and move – that’s what we’ll do.’
During the December 13 debate, state senator Paula Hicks-Hudson argued against the bill, saying that it prevented parents from acting in their child’s best interests
‘While I have reached a different conclusion on whether to sign this bill, I do share a number of these concerns and agree that action is necessary regarding a number of issues that they have raised,’ DeWine said of those involved in writing the bill
At least 20 states have passed some version of a ban on transgender athletes playing on K-12 and collegiate sports teams statewide.
Those bans would be upended by a regulation proposed by President Joe Biden´s administration that is set to be finalized early next year.
Gender-affirming care has been called safe and effective by more than 20 major national medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association (AMA), as ABC reported.
The AMA has said this care can be medically necessary to improve the physical and mental health of transgender people.
During the December 13 debate, state senator Paula Hicks-Hudson argued against the bill, saying that it prevented parents from acting in their child’s best interests.
‘When we look at this legislation, let’s be clear, it is not necessarily about preventing children from being exposed to these types of procedures, but it is preventing parents who are making decisions about the health care of their children,’ she said.
‘It also removes that decision for health care from professionals and parents and gives it again to government.’
But Terry Johnson, another state senator and a retired physician, said he was in favor of blocking the treatments.
‘If you don’t know if something you’re doing is going to hurt someone 10, 15, 20 years down the road – or maybe even one year down the road – don’t do it,’ he said.
‘While I have reached a different conclusion on whether to sign this bill, I do share a number of these concerns and agree that action is necessary regarding a number of issues that they have raised,’ DeWine said of those involved in writing the bill.