Minors seeking sex change treatments are experiencing longer drives as some clinics shut down in states that ban such medical interventions, a new study has found.
Seventy out of 271 gender clinics were deemed “inactive” due to restrictions in 20 U.S. states, according to the study published July 25 in JAMA, a publication of the American Medical Association. The study also found 89,100, (30%) of transgender-identifying minors aged 13 to 17 lived in states with restrictions.
Researchers conducted the study beginning in March 2023 by researching which clinics in the lower 48 states provide sex change treatments, including puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones. The study “excluded locations providing gender-affirming surgery only.”
The researchers identified states with restrictions on sex change treatments “based on the presence of enacted legislation, executive actions, funding provisions, or other policies that limited access to puberty-suppressing medications and hormones for patients younger than 18 years” as of May.
Researchers investigated how long it took residents to drive to gender clinics before state restrictions passed, and compared those drive times with how long patients had to drive after restrictions were implemented. (RELATED: School District Refused To Provide Speech Of Teacher Announcing Gender Transition To Students, Lawsuit Alleges)
🚨🚨BREAKING: The Louisiana State Senate just voted 28-11 to override the veto of Gov. John Bel Edwards on the bill to ban child sex change procedures.
The House did it earlier today so it’s now the law.
All the southern states have officially banned child gender mutilations.
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) July 18, 2023
About 50% of transgender-identifying minors aged 10 to 17 live more than an hour from a clinic now that several states have moved to restrict transgender surgeries and hormones, according to the study. Prior to restrictions, 27.2% of the same age group lived more than an hour from a gender clinic. The percentage of youth living a four-hour drive from a clinic was 1.4% prior to state restrictions, but has since increased to 25.3%, the study found.
The largest increase in median drive times to gender clinics were found in Florida, Texas and Utah, according to the study.
Nineteen states have restricted sex change treatments as of July 19, according to US News and World Report.
Republican Ohio Senator J.D. Vance introduced legislation to ban sex change treatments for minors in July. The bill would make knowingly providing sex change surgeries, cross-sex hormones or puberty blockers to a minor a Class C Felony, meaning doctors could receive a prison sentence of 10 to 25 years or a maximum fine of $250,000.
Some individuals who received surgeries or hormones to transition their sex at a young age now say they have regrets about transitioning. The Daily Caller interviewed several “detransitioners” in a recent documentary, “Damaged: The Transing of America’s Kids.” These individuals cite a loss of their fertility, an inability to experience sexual pleasure, as well as permanently altered physical appearances.