It was first published 19th.
2 years States pushed anti-trans lawsCongressional Republicans have introduced dozens of bills that would restrict transgender rights nationally, but most of the bills have never been debated. Now, with a new Republican-controlled Congress making anti-trans legislation a top priority and President-elect Donald Trump taking office, a wave of federal transgender legislation and executive orders is on the horizon.
How can Congressional Republicans restrict health care for trans Americans? Will Democrats block anti-trans bills?And what kind of anti-trans policies could President Trump enact without Congress? Here’s what gender people need to know.
What kind of legislation can transgender people expect from this new Congress?
Federal bills introduced in 2023 and 2024 indicate that Republicans in Congress are focused on restricting transgender medical care and reinforcing traditional gender roles. According to Trans legislation trackerthey introduced a bill to cancel it.Federal funding from hospitals that provide gender-affirming care. The proposed bill would also criminally charge doctors who provide medical care to minors with felonies, redefine gender under anti-transgender laws, and ban transgender people from serving in the military. The goal is to prevent state and federal governments from recognizing the existence of transgender people. Many of these policies are consistent with things like Trump’s own campaign promise.
Blocking federal funds from being used to provide gender-affirming care is the most popular anti-trans proposal in Congress. So far, 52 Republicans have approved A bill to prevent federal funds from being used for gender-affirming care of minors;Meanwhile, 49 Republicans approved A bill that would do the same for all trans Americans, No age limit.The bill was introduced to the House Ways and Means and Health Subcommittee in December.
Although some Republican lawmakers who supported these bills have retired or are now out of office after losing re-election in 2024, these bills received significantly less support in Congress than other anti-trans policy proposals. It is gaining support. It still needs to be reintroduced to the current Congress before it can be voted on and passed into law.
Looking to the future, house rules package That’s because the next Congress has made anti-trans policies a legislative priority. The document, which sets out the chamber’s rules of engagement, reads as follows, as amended: Title IXa federal civil rights law banning sex discrimination in schools should be one of Congress’s first actions. Republicans want to require that gender be “recognized solely based on reproductive biology and genetics at birth” when determining Title IX compliance in athletics.
How will these bills affect transgender people?
revocation of federal funding for Gender-affirming care It would reduce gender transition care for people who receive subsidies under Medicare, Medicaid, or the Affordable Care Act.1 in 5 transgender adults receive insurance compensation by Medicaid based on 2023. KFF/Washington Post Trans Investigation. Transgender adults in the U.S. are also more likely than cisgender adults to be uninsured, earn less than $50,000 a year, and be unemployed, the study found.Disparities linked by researchers systematic discrimination And transphobia.
Many transgender people cannot afford to pay for medical care out of pocket. Without the ability to pay for prescription medication for hormones such as testosterone or estrogen, TransAmericans may have to abruptly stop hormone replacement therapy. harmful side effects Symptoms similar to menopause.
Cutting federal funding for gender-affirming care could also have a chilling effect on hospitals and clinics. as a state in the nation prohibited Hormone treatment and puberty blockers for transgender youth, some Medical practice has stopped treatment And pharmacies stopped dispensing prescriptions before they were legally required to do so. And hospitals would have good reason to prioritize federal funding. In 2021, nearly half of state and local health care and hospital spending was funded by the federal government, according to the nonprofit research organization. urban research institute.
Can these bills be blocked in a Republican-controlled Congress?
yes. Republicans currently control both chambers, but Democrats can filibuster the bill in the Senate, derailing Republican progress and stalling it forever. It takes 60 votes to end debate in the Senate, so filibuster This means that a bill needs more support than a simple majority (51 votes) to pass. Republicans still need Democratic participation to pass most bills.
Republicans have indicated they intend to do so. maintain the filibuster,but, As reported by Rolling Stone magazineit’s unclear whether enough Democrats in Congress are willing to use it to defend transgender rights. Jael Holtzman report that LGBTQ+ Advocates and some members of Congress believe that if faced with a choice between allowing gender-affirming care to continue and funding the government, Democrats could force Republicans to pass a bill to ban federal funding for gender-affirming care. He is “secretly afraid” that he may allow it to be enacted.
What anti-trans policies have already been passed in Congress?
Democrats have already compromised on anti-trans policies to pass legislation that must pass through Congress.
of $895.2 billion in annual defense spending Thanks to a last-minute addition by Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, the legislation passed last month would prevent children of military and veterans from qualifying for gender-affirming care under TriCare. President Joe Biden signed It noted that the law would deny medical care to “thousands of military children.” human rights campaign explained The bill is “the first anti-LGBTQ+ federal law enacted since the Defense of Marriage Act of 1996.”
This strategy began in earnest last year, but was unsuccessful. House Republicans in 2023 Embedded an unprecedented amount of anti-LGBTQ+ provisions Pass must-pass legislation to fund the federal government. These provisions included multiple attempts to limit federal funding for gender-affirming care, all of which failed. In the final version, $1.2 trillion spending package Only to fund the federal government through fiscal year 2024 1 anti-LGBTQ+ clause What remains is a ban on U.S. embassies from displaying the Pride flag.
A new Republican-controlled Congress could revive the failed anti-LGBTQ+ provisions.
What anti-trans policies could President Trump enact without Congress?
Even if anti-trans legislation is blocked, there are other ways to enact presidential policy.
Trump promised that implement some anti-trans policies He has focused on restricting medical care for transgender people through executive orders and directing change through federal agencies.
President Trump has asked the Justice Department to investigate “big drug companies” and hospital networks to determine whether they are concealing the side effects of gender-affirming medicine and the “illegal sale” of hormones and puberty blockers. I’m looking for it. He said that if a teacher or school official is found to have suggested to a child that he or she may be transgender, “they will face serious consequences, including possible civil rights violations for gender discrimination.” “We are asking the Department of Education to notify states and school districts.”
He has pledged to exclude health care providers and hospitals that provide gender-affirming care to transgender youth from Medicaid and Medicare programs. The reason is that providing such care violates the program’s federal health and safety standards. Although President Trump did not name any federal agencies in his proclamation, such policy changes would need to be made through rulemaking within the Secretary of Health and Human Services or the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
President Trump also wants “all federal agencies to end all programs that promote the concept of sex and gender reassignment, regardless of age.” This is a far-reaching proposal to prevent the idea of being transgender from reaching the public through the federal government.
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