Numerous Organizations Condemn Legislators’ Attacks on Healthcare Freedom and Raise Alarm about Statehouse’s Anti-Democratic Legislative Process

An unprecedented number of statewide groups have come together to condemn two bills that would attack young transgender Kansans’ freedom to access healthcare. The two bills, HB 2791 and HB 2792, are scheduled for a hearing Thursday.

Additionally, the ACLU of Kansas, Equality Kansas, Kansas Interfaith Action, Loud Light, Mainstream, Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes, Trust Women Foundation, and URGE are raising the alarm on anti-democratic processes by legislators that prevent everyday Kansans from participating.

“Trans youth should have the same chance to thrive as their peers—but these bills single out trans youth for unequal treatment,” said D.C. Hiegert, LGBTQ+ Legal Fellow of the ACLU of Kansas. “Not only do these bills discriminate by allowing non-transgender youth access to the same exact healthcare they are banning for trans youth–but they also violate parents' rights and Kansans' constitutional freedoms. These bills would set a precedent that medical providers should not give you the best medical care available, but instead will be forced to give you the medical care that Kansas politicians have decided on for you."

Puberty blockers and other forms of medical care listed in these bills are frequently provided to non-trans, such as cisgender or intersex, youth. Currently, Kansas doctors providing this care individualize it to meet the needs of each patient through a careful model of assessment and informed consent as required by state and federal laws and policies.

“The tragedy here is that extremists have hijacked our legislative process for their own political ends, without regard for the human cost along the way,” said Amber Sellers, Advocacy Director, Trust Women. “These are dangerous attacks on our bodies and intrusions on our medical care that threaten the wellbeing of our children, our communities, and our families.”

The two bills, HB 2791 and HB 2792, are currently scheduled for hearings before the House Committee on Health and Human Services this Thursday at 1:30 p.m at the statehouse. To provide testimony, the public is required to comply with various burdensome rules, rendering the process inaccessible to the majority of everyday Kansans who do not spend time in the capitol.

In order to submit testimony to the House Health Committee, members of the public must email their testimony and physically provide five hard copies to the committee. In some cases, a committee chair or committee member’s assistant may be able to print copies for the individual–if they know how to contact these people and what to ask, which many in the public don’t. Numerous organizations have received reports from Kansans of their written testimony being completely rejected by the House Health Committee when not accompanied by physical copies.

In addition to the House Health hearing, HB 2791 was scheduled with the Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare for a Thursday morning informational hearing, which does not allow public or oppositional testimony. However, late Tuesday, it was unclear whether this would instead be a public hearing followed by an immediate vote, which would mean even less than 48 hours notice was provided to the public to meet a 24-hour deadline for testimony submission.

“The House and Senate hearing processes make it clear that lawmakers aren’t even pretending to hear the voices of Kansans most impacted by these bills–they’ve completely silenced them,” said Taryn Jones, Lobbyist, Equality Kansas. “If only everyday Kansans were meaningfully allowed to participate, these committees would have clear proof that there is significantly more opposition to these bills than what they have allowed–but this hearing is clearly not in the spirit of good faith lawmaking.”

“Legislators who lack professional medical expertise risk disrupting medical practice in the state by attempting to select practice guidelines outside of specialized medical association’s recommendations,” said Wulf Roby, Director of Development and Communications, Loud Light Civic Action. “Every major medical association advocates against bills like these."

HB 2791 would effectively ban access to gender-affirming medical care for trans people under 18 years old and restrict state employees from providing or promoting social transition or gender-affirming care to trans people under 18. The bill’s extremely broad language threatens providers such as therapists, nurses, and physicians with strict liability lawsuits and licensure implications and also bans them from obtaining liability insurance to protect themselves. The bill does not define what it means to “promote,” “provide,” or “advocate” for social transition or gender-affirming medical care—potentially disrupting the work of mental and medical health professionals but also school counselors, teachers, daycare providers, and other employees who interact with trans youth. HB 2791 also violates patients, parents, providers, and state employee’s constitutional rights.

HB 2792 would effectively ban physicians licensed by the Board of Health and Healing Arts from providing “gender transition surgery” to trans people under 18, contradicting the most current and comprehensive standards of care guidelines. The bill also forces all Kansas medical providers to follow a single, incomprehensive care guideline–illustrating a significant overreach by the government into medical practice standards that would disrupt the Kansas medical profession and interfere with Kansas medical providers’ ability to provide best-practice up to date care.