In a few weeks, people under the age of 18 in the state of Florida will no longer be able to benefit from medical interventions aimed at changing gender after a decision voted on Friday, November 4 by the medical council of this American state, reported several local media.
The measure, which received six votes in favor and four votes against, will prevent doctors in this state from performing surgeries on minors and prescribing them drugs, including those that block puberty, as part of a course gender transition, according to the New York Times. These treatments are used in particular to fight against gender dysphoria: psychic disorders that people whose biological identity differs from their gender identity may experience. This new decision will not apply to patients who have already started one of these treatments.
“Chemical castration”
The measure was decided by the Florida State Medical Council, which coordinates health professionals in the territory, and whose 14 members were appointed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis who aspires to be re-elected to his position. job. This figurehead of American conservatives has spent months criticizing the treatments given to adolescents in the context of gender transitions. During a televised debate last week against his Democratic rival Charlie Crist, DeSantis claimed that“a large proportion of cases of dysphoria (of gender) solved themselves once (the children) become adults” and compared current methods to “chemical castration” of teenagers. In August, his administration banned funding for gender transition treatment through Medicaid, a major US government public health program for low-income people.
In the United States, several medical organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics had championed current treatments for gender dysphoria. The states of Arkansas and Alabama have passed laws prohibiting doctors from performing these treatments on teenagers, but these measures have been blocked by lawsuits.