Bans on best-practice medical care represent one of the most extreme and coordinated political attacks on transgender people in recent years. These bills target transgender youth by blocking their access to best-practice medical care, care that is backed by years of rigorous research and endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and other leading health authorities. These bills not only display a fundamental lack of understanding of transgender children, but they also ban access to medical care often by criminalizing either the doctors or even the parents of transgender youth seeking to provide best-practice medicine for children in their care. For more on these efforts, read MAP's 2021 spotlight report.
*Notes (and see the "Citations" tab or click "Citations & More Information" below the map legend for more information about every state):
-Yellow caution icons refer to other efforts attempting to limit or ban health care for transgender youth, such as non-legislative actions. This does not refer to bills introduced: as of April 1, 2023, nearly 4 out of 5 states have introduced these bills. See the "Citations" tab or click "Citations & More Information" below the map legend for more information about every state. (These each link to the same document.)
Bans Temporarily Blocked (In Full or In Part)
The following laws are at least partially blocked from being enforced. This map will be updated as these cases progress.
-Alabama: In May 2022, a federal judge temporarily blocked the part of the state's law that bans medication for transgender youth, though the rest of the law remains in effect for now, including the felony punishment and provisions that require school staff to tell parents if a child expresses thoughts that they might be transgender. The state's law applies to individuals up to the age of 19.
-Arkansas: In July 2021, a federal judge temporarily blocked Arkansas's 2021 ban from going into effect. However, the state passed a new law in 2023 (effective 90 days after the legislature adjourns) that will allow individuals who receive gender-affirming care as minors (or the family members of those minors) to sue their medical providers for malpractice, among other provisions.
Bans Not Yet In Effect
The following laws are not yet in effect, and youth should still be able to access care until the laws go into effect.
-Idaho: HB71 (2023) does not go into effect until January 1, 2024.
-Indiana: SB480 (2023) does not go into effect until July 1, 2023.
-Kentucky: According to the ACLU of Kentucky, SB150 (2023) "will not go into effect until late June 2023 - 90 days after the legislature adjourns. Trans youth can still receive care until that portion of the bill takes effect."
-Missouri: On March 20, 2023, the state's attorney general announced he is pursuing "emergency regulation" to restrict best practice medical care for transgender youth. As of April 5, these regulations have not yet been formally issued or provided to the state and therefore are not yet in effect.
-South Dakota: HB1080 (2023) does not go into effect until July 1, 2023.
-Tennessee: HB1 (2023) does not go into effect until July 1, 2023.
-West Virginia: HB2007 (2023) does not go into effect until January 1, 2024. The law also contains some exceptions for hormone-related medication for youth under certain circumstances and requirements. Click "Citations" or go to the bill text directly to learn more.
Recommended citation:
Movement Advancement Project. "Equality Maps: Bans on Best Practice Medical Care for Transgender Youth."
https://www.mapresearch.org/equality-maps/healthcare/youth_medical_care_bans. Accessed 04/09/2023.
*Note: These percentages reflect estimates of the LGBTQ adult population living in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Estimates of the LGBTQ adult population in the five inhabited U.S. territories are not available, and so cannot be reflected here.
20 % of LGBTQ population lives in states that ban best practice medication and surgical care for transgender youth
2 % of LGBTQ population lives in states that ban best practice surgical care for transgender youth
78 % of LGBTQ population lives in states that do not ban best practice medical care for transgender youth
10 % of LGBTQ population lives in states that have taken steps to ban or restrict best practice medical care for transgender youth, but state law does not ban this care (see note beneath map)
| State | Bans on Medical Care for Transgender Youth |
| Alabama | State does not have this law |
| Alaska | |
| American Samoa | |
| Arizona | State does not have this law |
| Arkansas | State does not have this law |
| California | |
| Colorado | |
| Connecticut | |
| Delaware | |
| District of Columbia | |
| Florida | State does not have this law |
| Georgia | State does not have this law |
| Guam | |
| Hawaii | |
| Idaho | State does not have this law |
| Illinois | |
| Indiana | State does not have this law |
| Iowa | State does not have this law |
| Kansas | |
| Kentucky | State does not have this law |
| Louisiana | |
| Maine | |
| Maryland | |
| Massachusetts | |
| Michigan | |
| Minnesota | |
| Mississippi | State does not have this law |
| Missouri | |
| Montana | |
| Nebraska | |
| Nevada | |
| New Hampshire | |
| New Jersey | |
| New Mexico | |
| New York | |
| North Carolina | |
| North Dakota | |
| Northern Mariana Islands | |
| Ohio | |
| Oklahoma | |
| Oregon | |
| Pennsylvania | |
| Puerto Rico | |
| Rhode Island | |
| South Carolina | |
| South Dakota | State does not have this law |
| Tennessee | State does not have this law |
| Texas | |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | |
| Utah | State does not have this law |
| Vermont | |
| Virginia | |
| Washington | |
| West Virginia | State does not have this law |
| Wisconsin | |
| Wyoming |
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