Recent legislation in Oklahoma renders transgender surgery on children and the prescription of puberty blockers a felon offense. Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt recently signed the new measures into law, drawing backlash from progressives and transgender activists.
On Monday, Gov. Stitt signed SB613 into law, making the provision of gender transition surgery and puberty blockers illegal for children under 18. Medical practitioners who violate this new law can have their licenses revoked and face civil actions from parents or guardians of children. Oklahoma joins 15 other states which have enacted similar laws against irreversible gender procedures on minors.
Governor Stitt said, “Last year, I called for a statewide ban on all irreversible gender transition surgeries and hormone therapies on minors so I am thrilled to sign this into law today and protect our kids. We cannot turn a blind eye to what’s happening across our nation, and as governor, I am proud to stand up for what’s right and ban life-altering transition surgeries on children in the state of Oklahoma.”
In February, Stitt described the motivation behind the bill, “We must protect our most vulnerable — our children. After all, minors can’t vote, can’t purchase alcohol, can’t purchase cigarettes. … We shouldn’t allow a minor to get a permanent gender altering surgery in Oklahoma.”
According to the summary of the final version of the bill:
An Act relating to health care; defining terms; prohibiting gender transition procedures for children; providing for administrative, criminal, and civil enforcement; authorizing certain civil actions and relief; authorizing Attorney General to bring enforcement actions; amending 59 O.S. 2021, Sections 509, 567.8, and 637, which relate to health care provider licensure; adding violations and penalties; updating statutory language; providing for codification; and declaring an emergency
Another summary of the bill states:
The engrossed version of SB 613 prohibits any health care provider from providing gender transition procedures to any child. Any person found to have violated this prohibition shall be guilty of a felony and subject to license revocation, a fine not to exceed $100,000.00, and/or a term of imprisonment not to exceed 10 years.
The measure also provides that the parent or legal guardian of a child subjected to gender transition procedures may bring a civil action against the health care provider who provided such treatment. The child who received the procedure may also bring an action upon reaching the age of majority. The court is authorized to award compensatory damages, punitive damages, injunctive relief, or any other appropriate relief.
The measure also authorizes the Attorney General to bring an action to enforce compliance with the provisions of this measure.
After Gov. Stitt signed this measure into law in Oklahoma, 16 states have enacted legislation restricting gender procedure on minors. These states include Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, South Dakota and West Virginia. Roughly two dozen states are considering legislation to block these transgender medical operations. It will be interesting to see how many other political leaders successfully implement similar legislation in their respective states and how they deal with the backlash from progressives.
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