Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the U.S. Child Protection Agency to investigate reports of “gender reassignment procedures” among Lone Star State children as potential child abuse.
Abbott issued the order in a letter Tuesday to the Texas Department of Family and Welfare Services, saying the procedures for transgender youth as hormone therapy is violence against children.
The directive came just one day after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who, like Abbott, is also a republicanissued a statement stating that such procedures were child abuse under existing Texas law.
Supporters say some children are encouraged to undergo serious medical procedures while still too young to know for sure that they are transgender.
But the Biden administration responded vehemently to the Texas order with a the White House a speaker called it unnecessary and dangerous.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the U.S. Child Protection Agency to investigate reports of “gender reassignment procedures” such as violence against children.
Abbott issued the order in a letter Tuesday to the Texas Department of Family and Welfare Services
“Conservative officials in Texas and other states across the country must stop engaging in health care decisions that create unnecessary tension between pediatricians and their patients,” White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karin Jean-Pierre told reporters. Dallas morning news.
“No parent should face the agony of a politician who hinders access to life-saving care for their child,” added Jean-Pierre.
Admiral Rachel L. Levine, a transgender woman who is Biden’s assistant secretary of health, also denied Abbott’s move.
“Leading pediatricians in our nation support evidence-based care for transgender sex-affirming young people. The HHS supports transgender youth and their health care providers, “Levine told Morning News.
But Abbott remained firm. Transgender rights have become a hot issue and are one of several cultural themes used by Republicans to present themselves as a sensible, parent-focused alternative to the Democratic Party.
Abbott wrote in his letter that “it is now illegal to subject children in Texas to a wide variety of optional gender reassignment procedures, including relocation surgeries that can cause sterilization, mastectomy, removal of otherwise healthy body parts and application. at puberty – blocking drugs or supraphysiological doses of testosterone or estrogen. ‘
The order requires the DFPS to “conduct a swift and thorough investigation into all reported cases of these abuses.”
LGBTQ rights activists gather at the Texas Capitol in September to protest Republican-led efforts to pass legislation restricting transgender student athletes
The letter notes that doctors, nurses and teachers are authorized reporters who must report alleged violence against children, not to mention that there are “criminal penalties for not reporting such violence against children”.
However, it was not immediately clear what legal impact his move would have on the parents of trans children or whether they would be or could be prosecuted.
Some Texas prosecutors have already ruled out prosecuting such cases, and government agencies have remained largely silent on how they interpret the new guidelines.
While conservative and religious groups praised Abbott’s move, transgender advocates called it harmful and politicized.
That’s what Texas Freedom Network President Val Benavides said Austin is an American statesman that Abbott’s action could deny “life-saving care for transgender youth.”
“Transgender people are already experiencing stigma and discrimination, harassment and violence just because of who they are,” Benavides said, adding that politicians use vulnerable young people as political pawns.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is an Abbott Republican, has issued an opinion stating that certain transition procedures are child abuse under existing Texas law.
“Despite opposition from children’s and medical groups, Paxton and the Texas Republican Party continue to create barriers and laws that deprive transgender children and their families of civil and equal rights.”
In recent months, the Texas Pediatric Society and the Texas Medical Association have called on Paxton not to target transgender children as potential crimes.
However, Abbott’s Republican allies in the Texas legislature praised his move.
“This (Paxton) opinion means nothing if it is not necessary,” Republican Matt Schaefer told the head of state.
“The truth is, however, that we need a special session immediately to look into this, now that we have the support of the Attorney General’s office. We will not back down from this – this is a hill on which we are ready to die, “he added.
Abbott’s letter comes as the debate over transgender athletes excites much of the United States. UPenn female swimmer Leah Thomas – who is transgender – broke records and won competitions against her biological-female competitors, sparking fierce criticism for having an unfair advantage.
Thomas’ success has been used as a multi-state, Republican-run, preliminary bill that will require students to compete in sports of the gender in which they were born.