By DANIEL BREEN
A bill banning gender-affirming medical care for Arkansans under 18 is now one step away from becoming law.
The Senate on Monday passed House Bill 1570, which bans transgender youth from obtaining gender transition care, like puberty blockers and hormone therapy. The bill, called the Save Adolescents from Experimentation, or SAFE, Act, would open physicians up to civil litigation and licensure penalties for providing gender-transition related therapies, including surgery, to minors.
Republican Sen. Alan Clark of Hot Springs, a co-sponsor of the bill, presented it on the Senate floor.
https://www.ualrpublicradio.org/post/arkansas-senate-passes-transgender-youth-medical-care-ban
Advocates for transgender youth, including actress Laverne Cox (top, center), urge Gov. Asa Hutchinson not to approve HB1570 in a news conference held by the ACLU.
CREDIT ACLU / ZOOM