California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a law Thursday that safeguards access to “gender-affirming” health care for transgender minors.
The legislation, Senate Bill 107, was authored by state Sen. Scott Wiener, who is a San Francisco Democrat. The law blocks out-of-state investigations into families who come to California to obtain “gender-affirming” care for their children. This includes puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy and sex reassignment surgery.
Newsom reportedly said that laws attempting to ban this type of healthcare for children “demonize” communities and are an act of hate, the Los Angeles Times noted.
“In California we believe in equality and acceptance. We believe that no one should be prosecuted or persecuted for getting the care they need — including gender-affirming care,” Newsom added. “Parents know what’s best for their kids, and they should be able to make decisions around the health of their children without fear. We must take a stand for parental choice.”
The law states that California law enforcement agencies cannot knowingly make or participate in the arrest or “any extradition of an individual pursuant to an out-of-state arrest warrant for violation of another state’s law against providing, receiving, or allowing a child to receive gender-affirming health care and gender-affirming mental health care in this state.”
On “Transgender Day of Visibility” in March, Biden administration agencies released guidance promoting “gender-affirming” care for minors, which Townhall covered.
Aside from “social transitioning,” which includes going by a different name and pronouns, “gender-affirming” care includes surgeries and puberty blockers. The agencies that published the guidance claimed “gender-affirming” steps are “reversible” and claimed that it’s not “child maltreatment or malpractice” to allow children to go under the knife to transition.
The guidance seemingly alluded to the fact that Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) launched investigations into the parents of transgender minors for child abuse.
In an interview with Townhall, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said “the answer is clear regarding so-called sex-change procedures, puberty blockers, and hormone therapies. When performed on children, these procedures are 'abuse' under Texas law. They’re illegal. And family courts, family-law government agencies, and the like must do their part to stop it."