Tennessee lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday that would ban puberty blockers as well as sex change hormones and surgeries in the state.
Republican Tennessee Majority Leaders William Lamberth and Jack Johnson introduced the Protecting Children from Gender Mutilation Act to bar doctors from prescribing controversial transgender procedures. The bill would also allow patients and families to sue doctors for up to $25,000 for each violation of the rule, according to documents obtained by WKRN State Capitol Reporter Chris O’Brien. (RELATED: California Passes Amendment By Massive Margins To Enshrine A ‘Right To Abortion’ In The State’s Constitution)
State legislators first moved to ban sex change procedures for minors in September, as Lamberth and Johnson moved to introduce legislation to that effect.
#Breaking We’ve obtained a copy of the bill draft limiting children’s gender transition treatment, put together by @SenJohnson and @WilliamLamberth.
Some quick takeaways:
– doctors could lose their license
– penalties from Attorney General
– right to sue later in life@WKRN pic.twitter.com/A02U4woNNL— Chris O’Brien (@THEChrisOB) November 9, 2022
The legislation comes after a bombshell report revealed that Vanderbilt University’s Dr. Shayne Taylor said in 2018 that providing sex change surgeries to minors was a “big money maker” and clarified that individuals who were against these surgeries due to religious beliefs would face “consequences,” according to the Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh. Weeks later, the hospital announced it would pause all sex change surgeries on minors.
A spokesperson for Tennessee governor Bill Lee told the Daily Caller in September that he was calling on the state Attorney General to open an investigation into whether Vanderbilt crossed any ethical or legal guidelines after the report.