A joint legislative committee for Florida’s state medical boards has voted to advance a rule that would stop children under the age of 18 from receiving gender transitioning treatments.
Members of Florida’s Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine Joint Rules/Legislative Committee recommended the rule on Friday following a request from state Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo to devise rules to block medical professionals from providing such treatment for youth. The rule will now advance to the state Board of Medicine and Board of Osteopathic Medicine, which will determine if it gets final approval.”I believe that based upon the testimony that we’ve heard this morning and the materials in the portal, that the risk of puberty suppressing therapies, cross-hormonal therapy and surgery, those risks outweigh the possible benefits and that there is a lack of consistent, reliable, scientific peer reviewed evidence concerning the efficacy and safety of such treatment,” said Nicholas Romanello, a member of the state Board of Medicine who proposed the rule, according to Florida’s Voice.If the rule is passed, minors already receiving the treatments would be allowed to continue if they were part of an Institutional Review Board-approved clinical trial at an affiliated university center.
The guidelines are clear and reasonable.
Earlier this year, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo requested that the Board of Medicine establish a standard for care for trans teens. The recommendation will now be passed on to the full medical board, who are likely to adopt the recommendation.
Legal Insurrection readers will recall that I recently did a health and safety assessment on puberty-blocking drugs promoted by Planned Parenthood. Prior to the vote, the committee heard a great deal of testimony from teens who are now detransitioning, because they regret their decision.
During the testimony, witnesses revealed that the effects of transitioning are not readily reversible and the use of drugs and hormones did produce side effects.
Advocates for the ban on trans care testified during the meeting, and included de-transitioners.One woman explained that she was diagnosed with PTSD, OCD and even attempted suicide while using testosterone while she was living as a transman.Since de-transitioning, she said her mental health has improved but she still has a disrupted menstrual cycle and other after effects.’I’m truly grateful I never got surgery because I’m happily married and 28 weeks pregnant,’ one woman said.’But if I had gotten surgeries that I so desperately wanted as a teenager, that would’ve stolen this future from me.’
One of the most moving statements came from Chloe Cole, who began detransitioning at 16 and is battling the push for “gender affirming care” for minors. Cole notes that she was very feminine as a young girl, but exposure to the internet and leftist victim-glamorizing helped mislead her to opting for the surgeries and treatments.
Cole has also slammed Biden, as he recently expressed support for “gender affirming” medical treatment for transgender minors, which pressures medical professionals to affirm and not question a child’s gender identity.
…18-year-old Chloe Cole, who was born female and transitioned to male as a young teen before “detransitioning,” thinks Biden’s stance could lead more young people down the road toward irreversible medical treatments.“What Biden was saying is dangerous,” Cole warned. “He’s trying to advocate for further experimentation on children.”The California teen, who began identifying as a boy at age 12, started puberty blockers and testosterone treatment at 13, and had an elective double mastectomy at 15 to masculinize her chest. By 16, she regretted the surgeries, which she says were spurred by insecurities about her appearance and the influence of social media rather than gender dysphoria. She blames medical professionals for failing to question or prevent her rapid transition.“I was failed by the system. I literally lost organs,” she told The Post in a previous interview.
Here is hoping Florida moves forward with the recommendation, and it is adopted by other states.
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