Lawmakers in at least 35 states have introduced more than 250 bills that aim to curb the rights of LGBTQ people, with more than 100 bills specifically targeting transgender people in what advocacy groups have called the worst year for anti-LGBTQ legislation in recent history.
A majority of the measures impact transgender youth, a population that is already disproportionately impacted by mental health challenges, barriers to healthcare, economic insecurity, and discrimination.
Many of the bills making their way through state legislatures aim to restrict trans youths’ participation in sports teams that align with their gender identity, or prohibit access to gender-affirming medical care such as hormone therapy and puberty suppression treatment—all of which can have a detrimental effect on physical and mental health, and several of these bills are facing legal opposition from advocacy groups in court. In April, Arkansas became the first state to outlaw gender-affirming treatment for trans youths, but Tennessee leads the nation in anti-transgender legislation, after enacting five new laws that ban their access to youth sports and medical treatments, extend restrictions to school bathroom use, and limit LGBT classroom instruction.
As these and other measures continue to threaten the health of LGBTQ+ people, Nicole Huberfeld, Edward R. Utley Professor of Health Law, and Julia Raifman and Sarah Ketchen Lipson, both assistant professors of health law, policy & management, spoke about the legal and mental health implications of this unprecedented wave of legislation. (author introduction)
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