Utah lawmakers said gender-affirming care is harmful to kids. Their own
study contradicts that claim
[May 29, 2025]
By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — When Utah Republicans passed a ban on
gender-affirming health care for children and teens in 2023, they argued
it was needed to protect vulnerable kids from treatments that could
cause long-term harm.
Years later, the results of a study commissioned under the same law
contradict that claim, and the Republican-led Legislature is facing
pressure to reconsider the restrictions.
Utah's Department of Health and Human Services and experts from the
state's leading health organizations concluded from a study of thousands
of transgender people that gender-affirming care generated “positive
mental health and psychosocial functioning outcomes."
Policies that prevent access to hormone therapy for minors cannot be
justified based on scientific findings or concerns about potential
regret in the future, the report states.
The agency is not taking a position on whether lawmakers should lift the
statewide ban on hormone therapy and surgeries for minors. But it
reminded lawmakers that they had intended for the prohibition to be
temporary until the state could conduct its own research.
Utah is among 27 states that have adopted laws restricting or banning
gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, who Republican
politicians have made a political lightning rod. Federal judges have
struck down bans in Arkansas, Florida and Montana as unconstitutional,
though a federal appeals court has stayed the Florida ruling. The law in
Kansas is not yet being enforced.
Some Utah Republicans said they were open to considering the findings of
the study, while others were quick to dismiss it.
In a joint statement, the House sponsor of the 2023 law banning
gender-affirming care and the chair of the Legislature’s interim health
committee said they “intend to keep the moratorium in place.”
“Young kids and teenagers should not be making life-altering medical
decisions based on weak evidence,” said Republican Reps. Katy Hall and
Bridger Bolinder. “Simply put, the science isn’t there, the risks are
real, and the public is with us."
All major medical organizations in the U.S. consider gender-affirming
care to be safe, effective and medically necessary for transgender
youth. But polling shows that Republicans' restrictions on transgender
kids' access to care resonate with voters, according to a recent survey
by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Senate President Stuart Adams said he is committed to reviewing the
report. The Republican leader has suggested previously that children and
teens are too young to consent to the treatments.
Children questioning their gender identity generally receive counseling
and may be prescribed puberty-blocking drugs or hormones.
Gender-affirming surgeries, such as operations to transform the chest or
genitals, are rarely performed on minors.
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People gather in support of transgender youth during a rally at the
Utah State Capitol Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023, in Salt Lake City. (AP
Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
 “The future and safety of kids are
paramount," Adams said. "That is why Utah enacted a law to safeguard
the long-term health and well-being of minors while providing time
to carefully examine the evolving medical landscape surrounding
novel and irreversible procedures for minors. I appreciate the Utah
Department of Health and Human Services for evaluating the available
evidence."
Utah Democratic leaders Rep. Angela Romero and Sen. Luz Escamilla
are urging their Republican colleagues to take more time to review
the more than 1,000-page report before deciding the future of the
ban.
Under the law, children who had already been diagnosed with gender
dysphoria before January 2023 were allowed to continue receiving
hormones. The University of Utah shut down its health clinic for
LGBTQ+ youth earlier this month after the law significantly
decreased its number of patients. Doctors who provide
gender-affirming care to minors in violation of the ban could lose
their licenses and face criminal charges.
The report prepared for lawmakers acknowledged certain risks
associated with gender-affirming care, including an increase in some
types of benign brain tumors. But experts highlighted the positive
impact of such treatments in mitigating the risk of suicide among
transgender youth.
“Patients that were seen at the gender clinic before the age of 18
had a lower risk of suicide compared to those referred as an adult,”
the report states. “When left untreated, individuals with gender
dysphoria may experience psychological and social harms.”
The report in Utah contrasts with one issued earlier this month by
President Donald Trump’s administration that questioned widely
accepted treatment standards from the World Professional Association
for Transgender Health. U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
did not release information about who authored the report, and major
medical groups said they were not consulted.
Trump's guidance urges greater reliance on behavioral therapy rather
than medical interventions for children who experience a disconnect
between their gender identity and their sex assigned at birth. It
follows an executive order Trump issued days into his second term
that says the federal government must not support gender transitions
for anyone under age 19.
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