Ohio’s state legislature has defied Republican Governor Mike DeWine’s veto and passed legislation banning transgender medical procedures for minors and restricting transgender athletes in school sports teams.
The veto override, with the Ohio Senate voting 24-8 and the House voting 65-28, means the ban will become effective in 90 days.
The law, known as House Bill 68, prohibits doctors from prescribing puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or performing gender transition surgery on minors under 18.
It also mandates that mental health providers obtain parental permission to diagnose and treat gender-related conditions in children, with penalties for medical professionals who violate the law.
The legislation also bans transgender athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports teams from kindergarten through 12th grade and collegiate level.
Republican Senator Kristina Roegner characterized attempts to change someone’s sex as futile, while Democratic Senator William DeMora denounced the bill as “anti-science and hateful.”
Governor DeWine initially vetoed the bill, citing concerns that such decisions should be left to families and medical providers.
However, Republicans in the legislature argued that the measure was necessary to safeguard children and overrode his veto with their supermajority.
In response to conservative criticism over his veto, Governor DeWine issued an executive order prohibiting gender-transition surgeries for children at certain medical facilities, although such procedures were reportedly not taking place in the state. This move was seen as a compromise.
Opponents of the legislation have indicated plans to challenge it legally, similar to efforts in Arkansas where a federal judge struck down a comparable law, deeming it a violation of children’s and families’ due process rights.
Arkansas is currently appealing the decision.
Source-BBC
