The Idaho house passed a bill last Tuesday (March 8th) which criminalizes transgender medical procedures for confused youth and makes it a felony punishable by life in prison to aid children in crossing state lines for these surgeries.
The bill targets procedures such as vasectomy, hysterectomy, mastectomy, puberty-blocking medication and supraphysiological doses of testosterone or estrogen.
“Whoever knowingly removes or causes, permits, or facilitates the removal of a child from this state for the purpose of facilitating any act prohibited … by this section shall be guilty of a felony,” the bill states. “Any person convicted of a violation … shall be guilty of a felony and shall be imprisoned in the state prison for a term of not more than life.”
The bill passed with a near party-line vote, with Idaho Republicans winning by 55-13. Dr Fred Wood, the House’s only physician, joined 12 Democrats in voting against the bill.