BOISE, Idaho — After the Idaho House of Representatives voted in favor of House Bill 71, which would ban gender-affirming care for minors in the state, some Idaho pediatricians are speaking out in opposition to the bill.
The Idaho chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) came out in opposition of the bill saying that the Idaho legislature should leave health-care decisions to the families of children.
RELATED | Idaho House votes to criminalize gender-affirming care for kids
Legislative liaison to the Idaho AAP, Jessie Duvall, MD., says gender-affirming care is not only safe but beneficial to kids that need it.
“This is care that has been researched from multiple different angles by many different people," says Duvall. "We have a lot of studies that prove that it’s safe, that it’s effective in reducing mental health issues such as depression and suicidality among young people. and that it works.”
An argument used against gender-affirming care for minors revolves around the regret children may feel after having a change of heart as they get older.
Chloe Cole, an activist from California who supports legislation like House Bill 71 around the country, was given gender-affirming care and surgery as a minor. Cole, who is now 18, says they wished they waited until they were an adult, as they no longer feel the way they did as a child. Cole also feels like the doctors coerced their family into making a hasty decision.
“No kid is equipped to make a decision like this and it’s something that should definitely be waited on," Cole said to Idaho News 6 earlier this month.
Duvall is aware of Cole's story, and while she says regret is a real possibility, it is overwhelmingly rare in cases of gender-affirming care. Cole's specific case would also be a rarity in Idaho as gender-affirming surgeries aren't happening in Idaho. The care available in Idaho is in the form of puberty blockers or hormone therapy, both of which are considered reversible.
The bill does not only ban the care, but it criminalizes physicians that would provide the care. According to the American Board of Pediatricians, Idaho ranks last among states in the number of pediatricians per 100,000 children. Duvall says criminalizing Pediatricians could deter even more from wanting to practice in the state.
“We’re going to start losing physicians," says Duvall. "We’re going to have trainees who don’t want to come here anymore because of that, and we’re going to have trainees that decide to leave here after they’re done with the training.”
