The New Hampshire House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday to ban specific transgender surgeries for minors. The revised legislation is now heading to the Senate, which is anticipated to approve it. The bill, known as House Bill 619, would stop health care providers from performing genital surgeries on minors and make it illegal to send anyone below 18 years old from the state to receive such procedures.
Initially, the legislation aimed to ban transgender surgeries like mastectomies, alongside the prohibition of cross-sex hormones and puberty-blocking drugs. However, the latest version only focuses on banning genital surgeries. While revisions have minimized its reach, the bill continues to face backlash as opponents argue that such governmental restrictions are unwarranted.
Democratic Rep. Jonah Wheeler, nonetheless, supported the bill, emphasizing that it addresses whether children should be able to undergo irreversible surgery. The fate of the legislation now lies with Republican Governor Chris Sununu, whose stance towards it remains unclear.
In 2022, Sununu expressed public opposition to a Parental Bill of Rights that would have restricted schools from keeping parents in the dark about a child’s gender confusion. This bill eventually died in the House. Recently, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine vetoed a similar bill; although the measure had passed both chambers of the state legislature, DeWine argued his veto was in line with “pro-life” sentiments.
Claims correlating transgender interventions with suicide prevention are scientifically unsupported. Such interventions can lead to lasting physical and psychological harm, including medical complications and suicidality. Moreover, studies show that over 80% of children experiencing gender dysphoria naturally outgrow it by late adolescence without surgical or pharmaceutical interventions.
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