South Dakota GOP lawmakers push trans youth health care ban

By AMANCAI BIRABEN and STEPHEN GROVES
Associated Press

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — A group of South Dakota Republican lawmakers are pushing a bill to outlaw gender-affirming health care for transgender youth. At least a dozen states are considering anti-transgender legislation this year. The South Dakota bill aims to keep children under 18 from accessing puberty-blocking drugs, hormone therapy or surgeries that enable them to present as a gender different from the sex on their birth certificate. It would also punish doctors who provide the care by revoking their medical license and exposing them to civil litigation. South Dakota Republicans have perennially considered bills aimed at limiting the health care, school facilities and sports teams that transgender youth can access.