A lawsuit filed this week aims to block a bill that would stop minors from accessing many types of transition-related healthcare, such as puberty blockers and hormone therapies.
Senate Bill 14 was passed by the Texas Legislature in May and signed into law in June. The lawsuit filed this week aims to block the ban before it goes into effect Sept. 1, 2023. It was filed by multiple law organizations including Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Texas.
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WATCH HEREPaul Castillo, senior counsel at Lambda Legal, said the plaintiffs challenging the law include five Texas families, three medical professionals, and two organizations representing hundreds of families and health professionals across the state.
“Medically necessary care for transgender youth to alleviate their dysphoria is critical. It is oftentimes life-saving,” Castillo said Thursday.
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SIGN UP “These parents, like every other parent, deserve to make decisions about the best course of care in consultation with their physicians to keep their transgender adolescent safe and healthy,” Castillo said.
Plaintiffs in the lawsuit claim Senate Bill 14 violates the right to parental autonomy guaranteed by the Due Course of Law Clause of the Texas Constitution, because “it prevents Texas parents with transgender children suffering from gender dysphoria from accessing the medically necessary treatment that medical providers have recommended for their children.”
“The Ban discriminates against parents seeking care for their transgender adolescent children in the exercise of their fundamental right to make decisions concerning the care, custody, and control of their children, by prohibiting them from seeking and following medical advice to protect the health and wellbeing of their children,” the lawsuit states.
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On May 17, the Texas Senate debated the bill before ultimately passing the measure by a 19 to 12 vote.
Sen. Bob Hall, R-District 2, argued the bill was meant to protect children.
“This bill doesn’t get in the way of an adult that can make their own decisions. We’re doing what we’re supposed to be doing. We are the Legislature. Our job is to protect people,” Sen. Hall said in May. “We protect children against lots of things. We don’t let them smoke. We don’t let them drink. We don’t let them buy lottery cards. There’s a lot of things we don’t let them do, because we’re protecting them.”
During that same debate in May, Sen. Jose Menendez-District 26 voted against it.
“My concern is that we are interjecting ourselves in between parents, medical professionals, educated professionals, and we’re going to be obstructing their ability to make the decision that they feel is best for them,” Sen. Menendez said.
The bill was signed into law in June by Gov. Greg Abbott, whose office did not return multiple requests Thursday for comment on this lawsuit.
Castillo said the lawsuit was filed in Travis County, and they are hopeful to get a hearing in August with a decision before Sept. 1. He said the temporary injunction hearing could include medical experts and families impacted by the ban.
