Oklahoma’s Senate passed a bill that would ban gender-affirming care, including surgeries and hormone and puberty blockers for minors.
Senate Bill 613 was voted overwhelmingly in favor of the bill, passing in a 37-8 vote by a Republican-led Senate. It is now heading to Gov. Kevin Stitt’s (R) desk, who is expected to sign it.
During the voting, Republicans argued that restrictions on transgender surgeries were necessary in order to prevent irreversible harm to children and protect them from the Left’s progressive push.
Sen. Shane Jett (R-Shawnee) praised the bill’s passage, saying that such life-alternating procedures are “medical malpractice” and the mutilation and sterilization of children.
On the contrary, Democrats said the bill is an invasion of parental rights.
Sen. Carri Hicks (D-Oklahoma City) claimed that “gender-affirming care is life-saving care.”
If signed into law, the bill would prohibit any medical procedure that alters the biological characteristics of children relating to their sex, making it a felony if a physician was caught violating the law.
A day later, Montana became the next state to ban gender-affirming care for minors, even after much controversy following pushback from Gov. Greg Gianforte’s (R) son, who identifies as gay and nonbinary and uses “he” and “they” pronouns.
In a letter supporting the bill, Gianforte said that it will “protect Montana children from permanent, life-altering medical procedures until they are adults, mature enough to make such serious decisions.”
The bill was signed into law after the Montana House voted to ban state Rep. Zooey Zephyr (D) from voting on the House floor and being present in the anteroom and gallery for the rest of the session after she made “inappropriate and uncalled-for language.”
Zephyr told those who supported the bill that they would have “blood on your hands” if it passed, calling the ban on gender-affirming care “unconstitutional.”