Sex change drugs and hormones for minors are now banned in Kentucky.
A federal judge had placed an injunction on the law last month due to a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, but he lifted it on Friday.
U.S. District Judge David Hale’s ruling means that the law is now in effect, and minors can no longer be prescribed puberty blockers or hormones.
Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron applauded the decision in a statement.
“Today’s ruling is a win for parents and children. I’m grateful to the district court for doing what the law requires, which is protecting Kentucky kids from the irreversible harms that these experimental drug treatments would cause,” said Attorney General Cameron. “Moving forward, my office will continue to defend Senate Bill 150 and stand up for the right of children to be children, free from the influences of leftist activists and radical gender ideology.”
These “treatments” can leave children permanently sterilized, cause increased bone density, and cause “lower self-esteem and increased risk tasking,” according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.
“By securing a stay of the district court’s injunction, Attorney General Cameron demonstrates his willingness to fight for the rule of law and the protection of Kentucky’s children,” said State Representative Jennifer Decker, who helped pass the legislation in the House. “It is well within the legislature’s power to ban the experimental use of off-label drugs that cause long-term, irreversible consequences for children, and it is fortunate that today’s ruling allows SB 150 to take effect pending the Attorney General’s appeal.”
Democrat Governor Andy Beshear vetoed the bill, but the Republican supermajority legislature overrode it.
“What they took away are basic medical decisions for parents to be able to make,” Beshear said of the Republican-led legislation, claiming that they were taking away parental choice.
Under the new law, physicians who perform so-called “gender-affirming care” on minors can have their licenses revoked.
Kentucky now joins Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, South Dakota and West Virginia in banning sex change “treatments” for children.