A group of physicians is voicing opposition to Utah's enactment of Senate Bill 16, banning gender-affirming health care for transgender youth.

The American Academy of Pediatrics' Utah chapter said politics do not belong in the exam room or in the decision-making process between providers, patients and families. The group is concerned the new law could endanger the physical and mental health of some young Utahns.

Dr. Ellie Brownstein, president of the chapter, said transgender youth are already in a high-risk population needing appropriate and adequate care. She fears lawmakers have diminished doctors' ability to offer it.

"I've already heard from one family who has set up care in an outside state, so that their child can get the care that they feel like they need," Brownstein reported. "That's not available to everybody, so you do have a whole group that will not have that as an option."

The law is one of many similar measures conservative states have passed to restrict this kind of care. Brownstein explained most transgender youth go through a gradual transition. It is not until puberty or later they may consider hormone therapy, puberty blockers or surgery. She fears the new law will lead some to seek alternative forms of care online.

The Utah law bars all minors from receiving gender-affirming surgeries, and places an indefinite moratorium on kids under 18 receiving puberty blockers or hormone therapy. Supporters of the bill say long-term research in this medical field is lacking. Brownstein's group also wants to see more research, but added it must be conducted in ways to support transgender youth instead of invalidating them.

"I get the impression of these stories I hear of, like, I walked in and said, 'I think I'm male, not female,' and someone said, 'Cool, here are your hormones, go home.' And I would say the process is nothing like that," Brownstein asserted. "It involves psychology, it involves time."

Studies have shown gender-affirming care for youth can reduce emotional distress, improve overall well-being and reduce the risk of suicide. In Utah, civil rights groups have already said they plan to challenge the law in court.

A new study from the University of New Hampshire found New England's LGBTQ+ residents experience higher rates of food insufficiency, the measure of whether a household generally has enough food to eat, than other people.

Research shows the overall food insufficiency rate in New England is more than 7%, yet it is nearly double for LGBTQ+ residents, and nearly triple for transgender people.

Isaac Leslie, extension assistant professor of community development at the University of Vermont who was a research associate at the University of New Hampshire, said while New England has a lower food insufficiency rate compared to the rest of the U.S., the study showed not everyone has the same advantage.

"Poverty and systemic discrimination are really at the center of the story here," Leslie asserted. "You see that reflected in food insufficiency rates."

Leslie noted researchers used data from the U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey, which in 2021, became one of the first national surveys to include measures of gender identity and sexuality.

LGBTQ+ New Englanders of color experience even higher rates of food insufficiency, with one in three Black transgender New Englanders not having enough food to eat in the past week. Researchers found LGBTQ+ people may be eligible for food assistance programs but feel unsafe providing detailed documents to enroll.

Leslie pointed out there are clear examples of systemic discrimination against LGBTQ+ people, even in progressive New England.

"And you don't find those until you start looking underneath the hood at rates like food insufficiency," Leslie explained.

Leslie added the findings suggest policymakers should address the ways in which racism and discrimination create an ongoing food crisis for LGBTQ+ New Englanders, especially those who are people of color. The findings are published in the journal Agriculture and Human Values.

Both chambers of the Maryland legislature have passed a bill that would require the state's Medicaid program to cover gender affirming care.

While some gender affirming treatments are currently covered by Medicaid, the Trans Health Equity Act would expand coverage to all forms of gender affirming treatment that are consistent with current clinical standards.

Last year - the Williams Institute at the University of California, LA - estimated there are 24,000 Transgender Marylanders.

The legislation was introduced in the House by state Del. Anne Kaiser - D-Montgomery County - and she said she sees it as telling Trans Marylanders they are part of the community.

"I like to think," said Kaiser, "that this legislation tells trans Marylanders, as I said at the hearing on Valentine's Day, 'We love you, you are welcome here, you are our neighbors, you're our friends, you belong, you're welcome' - which is obviously quite different from what is happening in some other states."

An amendment put forward on Friday by state Del. Mark Fisher - R-Calvert County - would have prevented Medicaid from providing gender-affirming care, including puberty blockers, to qualified patients under age 18.

Supporters of the amendment believe the science surrounding puberty blockers is not settled, but the amendment was rejected after an hour of debate.

The current standard of care in medicine including in Maryland allows children to access gender affirming care with the approval of parents and doctors.

Each bill will now be considered by the opposite chamber before going to the governor.

A similar bill passed the Senate last year but failed in the House. This time around supporters include Gov. Wes Moore - who, Kaiser said, is in favor of the measure.

"The governor spoke in favor of this legislation by name during the campaign and put out supportive documentation at the time," said Kaiser. "I spoke with his staff at the time and so we've connected with him now he's ready to sign the bill into law. "

If signed into law, the bill would take effect October 1.





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New Mexico's LGBTQ community will soon have additional protections after existing language in state law was updated by the Legislature.

Sen. Carrie Hamblen, D- Doña Ana, co-sponsored House Bill 207 and said modification of the state's Human Rights Act means public institutions can no longer turn away or discriminate against people in the LGBTQ community without facing consequences.

"It prohibits public institutions, along with religious entities, to discriminate against these protected classes if they receive money from the state," Hamblen explained. "Meaning our tax dollars are not going to discriminate against New Mexicans."

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham is expected to sign the legislation, which also updates language regarding people with disabilities, by removing the term "handicapped" from existing law. The governor has already signed legislation to prohibit out-of-state investigations targeting gender-affirming care.

An openly Lesbian senator, Hamblen noted the significance of New Mexico protecting the most vulnerable amid the firestorm of anti-LGBTQ policies sweeping the country.

"I'm recognizing how important representation is, and visibility is, and being able to speak for those voices that are silenced," Hamblen noted. "And that they have people who are looking out for them and who will protect them."

New Mexico's governor also signed a bill to override local ordinances limiting access to abortion procedures and medications, already adopted in the cities of Hobbs, Clovis and Eunice, along with Lea and Roosevelt counties.

Republicans, a minority in the legislature, opposed the bill saying it could put the state at odds with neighboring Texas, which has banned abortion at all stages of pregnancy with limited exceptions.