By Annelise Hanshaw | SAINT LOUIS – St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones on Thursday signed an executive order seeking to insulate transgender Missourians from bills passed by the state legislature restricting access to certain medical procedures for minors and limiting participation in school sports.

“The responsibility now falls to local governments to take tangible steps to respond to this state intrusion into private family medical decisions and minors’ bodily privacy,” she wrote in a letter to the city’s legislative delegation earlier in the day notifying them of her planned order.

Missouri lawmakers passed bills earlier this month banning minors from beginning gender-affirming hormones or puberty blockers for four years, starting in August, and restricting transgender athletes to competing on teams as their birth sex. Both bills await action by Gov. Mike Parson, who has indicated he intends to sign them into law. 

Jones’ order calls the bills “an abhorrent intrusion into personal freedom and liberty.”

She wrote that her executive order was crafted after “conversation and consultation with members of the LGBTQ+ community and our city departments” and expressed concern for families moving out of state because of state legislation.

The order calls for the city Department of Health to inform residents, including minors, about gender-affirming care. Jones plans for an annual “summit of health care providers and other individuals” to discuss the best practices for transgender health care.

The order would direct city agencies to inform residents, including minors, about gender-affirming care and allow athletes in city-funded recreation programs to compete according to their gender identity

It also allows transgender athletes in city-funded recreation programs to compete according to their gender identity, for she states that these programs must not require the disclosure of gender or one’s gender-affirming hormone treatment. The Missouri State High School Activities Association policy currently allows transgender athletes to compete according to their gender identity only if they have been taking cross-sex hormones.

City recreation centers would also have at least one all-gender restroom under her order, and staff would receive training on “affirming best practices.”

Buildings housing city administration are ordered to also have at least one all-gender restroom, and the city departments are directed to administer their services in a gender-affirming manner.

Jones prioritizes economic development in the order, stating future projects must support gender inclusivity.

She requests that the St. Louis Development Corp. advise how to incentivize inclusive business practices.

“All of our children in St. Louis deserve to know that there are still elected leaders out here fighting for them,” Susan Halla, president of transgender advocacy group TransParent, said in a news release. “I am grateful to Mayor Jones for instituting these important changes in the face of recent attacks on trans youth from the Missouri legislature. For our trans youth, please know that you are seen and you are loved for who you are.”

Earlier this month, the Kansas City Council resolved that the city would be a “safe haven” for gender-affirming care. The resolution directs city staff, including law enforcement, from penalizing those seeking gender-affirming care or providing it.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey called the city council’s actions “unprecedented and radical” in a letter to the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners. In it, he urged the board to make sure police enforce the new law when it goes into effect. 

The bill does not have criminal penalties for those who seek care, so it is outside the police’s enforcement, Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said in a statement to the Kansas City Star.

Rep. Peter Merideth, D-St. Louis, told The Independent he was proud to be a St. Louis resident after the mayor signed her order.

“Government should be supporting folks’ access to quality medical care, not interfering with our private medical decisions,” he said. “Our leaders should be fighting for all kids to be included in activities like sports and have an opportunity to succeed — not bullying kids who are too often already bullied and left out.”

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Annelise Hanshaw writes about education — a beat she has covered on both the West and East Coast while working for daily newspapers in Santa Barbara, California, and Greenwich, Connecticut. A born-and-raised Missourian, she is proud to be back in her home state.

MORE FROM AUTHOR

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The preceding article was previously published by The Missouri Independent and is republished with permission.

The Missouri Independent is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to relentless investigative journalism and daily reporting that sheds light on state government and its impact on the lives of Missourians. This service is free to readers and other news outlets.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – By a 12 to 1 vote, the city council approved a resolution Thursday to declare it a sanctuary for people seeking or providing gender-affirming care.

The action was taken a day after the Republican majority statehouse sent two bills to Missouri Republican Governor Mike Parson that will restrict trans residents’ access to healthcare and prohibit them from participating in school sports.

“Kansas City government is committed to ensuring Kansas City is a welcoming, inclusive, and safe place for everyone, including our transgender and LGBTQ+ community. After the Missouri state legislature introduced several bills criminalizing access to gender affirming healthcare across Missouri, I am proud City Council took action and approved the “safe haven” resolution to take steps, within our legal power, to protect our transgender community and anyone seeking gender-affirming care,” Mayor Quinton Lucas said. “For decades, Kansas City has been at the forefront of our region, ensuring we have equality for all, and we will continue to do everything in our power to fight for equal rights for all in our city, no matter what happens at our state capitol.”

A spokesperson for the City noted that the resolution directs City personnel to not criminally prosecute or impose administrative penalties on an individual or organization for providing, seeking, receiving, or assisting another individual who is seeking gender-affirming healthcare.

If a law is put into place by the State of Missouri which imposes criminal punishment, civil liability, administrative penalties, or professional sanctions on an individual or organization against gender-affirming healthcare, City staff are now directed to make this their lowest priority. The Kansas City, Missouri Police Department is encouraged to adopt a similar policy.

“Today, we reiterate our commitment to a diverse and inclusive Kansas City that is welcoming to all. As a woman and a mother, I strongly feel that personal health care decisions should be reserved for individuals, families, and their physicians without influence from politicians,” Councilwoman Andrea Bough, the resolution’s sponsor said. “Public service should be about helping the community not harming individuals. Today we are proclaiming to our Transgender and LGBTQ community that you are safe with us.”

“This is an important first step in Kansas City’s commitment to trans and nonbinary people. This resolution is critical to protecting health outcomes for trans people and it’s important to remember that gender affirming health care is still out of reach for many trans communities, including many trans people of color – especially trans women and femmes of color, poor trans people, and trans youth living in unsupportive homes” Merrique Jenson, founder of Transformations KC said. “I look forward to trans leaders and Kansas City working together to address the health disparities in our communities and ways we can have sustainable funding & programming reaching all trans people.”

The two bills, once signed by the governor would make Missouri the 17th state to enact bans on gender-affirming healthcare.

Senate Bill 39 will ban “all transgender student athletes from kindergarten through college from being able to play sports on sanctioned school teams that align with their gender identity.”

The law would apply to public, private, and charter schools, which risk losing state funding for noncompliance.

Senate Bill 49, meanwhile, “bans gender affirming surgery for anyone under 18,” along with “access to transgender affirming care for minors who are not already on a prescribed path for healthcare.”

Additionally, under the law,” Medicaid will no longer be able to cover gender affirming healthcare for children or adults” and “people who are incarcerated will no longer have access to any gender affirming care while they are in state custody.”

Sherae Honeycutt, the Press Secretary for the City noted that Kansas City has lengthy record of standing support for its LGBTQ+ residents:

• In 2023, the City hosted its first Transgender Day of Visibility event hosting Admiral Rachel Levine, the highest ranking Transgender person in the Federal Government as the Assistant Secretary for Health.
• In 2023, the City added gender-affirming treatments and procedures to the City’s employee Healthcare plan.
• In 2021 & 2022, the City received a perfect score on the Municipal Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign which measures how a municipality supports the LGBTQ+ community as a whole.
• In 2021, City Manager Brian Platt and LGBTQ+ Commission partnered to install four Pride Progress rainbow themed crosswalks at 39th & Summit.
• In 2021, the City flew the Progress Pride Flag atop City Hall.
• In 2021, City Manager Brian Platt developed an all-gender restroom policy for city buildings.
• In 2020, the City established the LGBTQ Commission to help broaden perspectives and assist in the guidance of initiatives, issues, polices, and legislation.
• In 2019, the City Council banned conversion therapy and “reparative therapy.”
• In 2018, KC Proud, the City’s first LGBTQ+ employee resource group was established.
• In 1993, the City Council adopted an anti-discrimination ordinance.

JEFFERSON CITY – The Republican controlled Missouri legislature on Wednesday sent bills to the state’s Gov. Mike Parson (R) that will restrict trans residents’ access to healthcare and prohibit them from participating in school sports.

“It’s an incredibly devastating day for transgender Missourians, for families raising transgender youth, and for all of Missouri,” said Shira Berkowitz, senior public policy director for PROMO Missouri, the statewide LGBTQ advocacy organization, in a video shared on Twitter.

Today is a devastating day for trans Missourians, families raising trans youth, BIPOC & trans women of color who will see an increase in violence, and rural trans Missourians with less resources available. Our state government is waging an all-out war on trans Missourians. pic.twitter.com/lkNtmWRHx3

— PROMO Missouri (@PROMOMissouri) May 10, 2023

According to PROMO, S.B. 39 will ban “all transgender student athletes from kindergarten through college from being able to play sports on sanctioned school teams that align with their gender identity.”

The law would apply to public, private, and charter schools, which risk losing state funding for noncompliance.

S.B. 49, meanwhile, “bans gender affirming surgery for anyone under 18,” along with “access to transgender affirming care for minors who are not already on a prescribed path for healthcare.”

Additionally, under the law,”Medicaid will no longer be able to cover gender affirming healthcare for children or adults” and “people who are incarcerated will no longer have access to any gender affirming care while they are in state custody.”

Saint Louis Rabbi Daniel Bogard, who is raising a trans son and has been active in advocacy over the state’s anti-trans legislation, condemned the move in a tweet Wednesday.

I hate them so much. And I hate that I hate them. May the grandchildren of the Republican politicians passing these bigoted bills grow up to be ashamed of who their grandparents were. Yimach shemam #ProtectTransKids #SB49 #DarkDayInMissouri

— Rabbi Daniel Bogard (@RavBogard) May 10, 2023

By Annelise Hanshaw | CLAYTON, Mo. – Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey is still blocked from enforcing an emergency rule limiting gender-affirming care after a St. Louis County judge granted a 14-day temporary restraining order Monday.

The lawsuit, filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri and Lambda Legal, alleges that Bailey abused the state’s consumer protection law to create the emergency order. If the attorney general is allowed to place restrictions on gender-affirming care, the lawsuit contends, their five plaintiffs will face harm, like possible infertility or not being able to continue medical treatment.

Circuit Court Judge Ellen Ribaudo ruled Monday that plaintiffs proved they would be harmed by the emergency rule, and the court will have to decide whether Bailey could use the consumer protection law, known as the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, to regulate gender-affirming care.

“This is a novel use of the attorney general’s power to promulgate emergency rules under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act that has never previously been subjected to judicial scrutiny and may impermissibly invade a function reserved to the legislature,” Ribaudo wrote in her order.

Ribaudo scheduled a hearing for 1 p.m. on May 11 to determine whether the court will place a preliminary injunction, which would stop the emergency rule until the completion of the lawsuit.

The rule was originally scheduled to go into effect last Friday, but Ribaudo blocked it until today to give both sides a chance to make their case regarding a temporary restraining order.

Inside the attorney general’s argument

Solicitor General Josh Divine wrote in a 62-page response to the plaintiff’s request for a restraining order that the emergency rule was inspired by three things: “Emerging international consensus” on potential dangers of gender-affirming care, a growing number of transgender youth and an independent investigation by the Missouri Attorney General into the state’s gender-affirming care centers.

He repeats allegations from Jamie Reed, a former case worker at the Washington University Transgender Center who has lately been asking legislators to ban gender-affirming care for minors.

Reed’s allegations have been countered by Washington University, which denied wrongdoing after an internal investigation, and Transgender Center patients and parents who spoke to The Independent about the care process.

Divine advocates for “talk therapy” in the court filing and alleges that some gender-affirming-care providers skip this step before prescribing puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones. The attorney general office’s argument alleges some trangender people may not want medical intervention after talk therapy.

“Without the benefit of well-established talk therapy, many individuals are chemically transitioning who would never have felt the need to do so had they been guaranteed access to basic talk therapy care,” Divine writes.

Talk therapy is encouraged by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), Divine says, though he cites WPATH’s seventh edition of its standards of care, not its most updated recommendations. 

Plaintiff’s argument also leans on WPATH’s standards of care, which are endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry and the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Population Affairs.

But Divine criticizes WPATH as a “self-described activist organization” with “low-quality evidence,” despite also citing the organization.

His argument refers to international agencies’ critique of gender-affirming care in youth as “the elephant in the room” that plaintiffs don’t acknowledge.

Plaintiffs’ argument instead focuses on the decades of gender-affirming care in the United States.

“The rule fails to explain how medical care that has existed for decades now suddenly constitutes an emergency demanding immediate non-legislative action,” the original lawsuit says.

The ACLU of Missouri and Lambda Legal also note in the original petition that the emergency rule affects adults, despite press releases from the attorney general stating he was intending to protect children.

Divine addresses the emergency rule’s scope by arguing that “talk therapy is beneficial for all individuals.”

“Had the attorney general limited the regulation to 16- and 17-year- olds, plaintiffs no doubt would have attacked it as arbitrary and underinclusive for removing protections from patients as soon as they turn 18,” he also wrote.

The case may come down to whether the attorney general has the authority to enact the emergency rule under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act.

The ACLU of Missouri and ACLU say the rule oversteps the law’s bounds, but Divine writes that the law covers “medical goods and services.”

“The invocation of the MMPA as authority to implement the emergency rule for the explicit purpose of prohibiting or limiting medical care to patients of any age presents an issue of first impression for the courts,” Ribaudo wrote in her order Monday.

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ANNELISE HANSHAW writes about education — a beat she has covered on both the West and East Coast while working for daily newspapers in Santa Barbara, California, and Greenwich, Connecticut. A born-and-raised Missourian, she is proud to be back in her home state.

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The preceding article was previously published by The Missouri Independent and is republished with permission.

The Missouri Independent is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to relentless investigative journalism and daily reporting that sheds light on state government and its impact on the lives of Missourians. This service is free to readers and other news outlets.

SAINT LOUIS – St. Louis County Circuit Judge Ellen Ribaudo issued a stay on Missouri Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s emergency rule on transgender health care until May 1.

Ribaudo said Wednesday that she would like more time to review the matter before deciding whether to issue a temporary restraining order local NBC affiliate KSDK 5 News reported. The judge noted that she had delayed implementation of the rule until 5 p.m. Monday, also noting that she anticipates she will issue a ruling before then.

ACLU of Missouri, Lambda Legal, and a private law firm, Bryan Cave Leighton LLP, filed their petition on Monday. The attorneys for those groups argued that Bailey’s actions were an attempt to legislate and harm transgender Missourians while ignoring evidence-based medical treatment.

The petition names Bailey, who filed the emergency rule on April 13, seeking to impose severe restrictions on gender-affirming care for trans people of all ages.

Gender-affirming care is not only evidence-based but is also supported by overwhelming scientific evidence, decades of clinical experience, and the medical consensus of major medical organizations in the United States. 

In the court filing, attorneys told the court:

“The Emergency Rule interferes with the ability of medical and mental health providers to
follow these evidence-based protocols. In so doing, the Emergency Rule denies transgender
adolescents and adults medically necessary treatment and prevents parents from exercising their fundamental rights to obtain medically necessary care for their adolescents. It further regulates doctors and mental health providers and prohibits them from treating their patients in accordance with well-established standards of care.

Additionally, the Attorney General promulgated the Emergency Rule almost a month
after announcing it, which undermines any supposed emergency basis for it, and only emphasizes the truth: there is no emergency.”

During the hearing on Wednesday, ACLU of Missouri’s Tony Rothert told Ribaudo the regulations “will cause immediate, severe and potentially irreparable harm” for people who could lose access to medications that include puberty blockers and sex hormones.

 

CLAYTON, Mo. – Legal groups ACLU of Missouri, Lambda Legal, and a private law firm, Bryan Cave Leighton LLP, filed a petition in St. Louis County Circuit Court Monday seeking a temporary restraining order to block implementation of the Missouri Attorney General’s emergency rule that places extreme restrictions on gender affirming care for trans people of all ages in Missouri.

Arguing on behalf of St. Louis-based Southampton Community Healthcare, Kelly Storck, Logan Casey, and the families of two transgender people, the attorneys argued that Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s actions were an attempt to legislate and harm transgender Missourians while ignoring evidence-based medical treatment.

The petition names Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who filed the emergency rule on April 13, seeking to impose severe restrictions on gender-affirming care for trans people of all ages. Gender-affirming care is not only evidence-based but is also supported by overwhelming scientific evidence, decades of clinical experience, and the medical consensus of major medical organizations in the United States. 

In the court filing, attorneys told the court:

“The Emergency Rule interferes with the ability of medical and mental health providers to
follow these evidence-based protocols. In so doing, the Emergency Rule denies transgender
adolescents and adults medically necessary treatment and prevents parents from exercising their fundamental rights to obtain medically necessary care for their adolescents. It further regulates doctors and mental health providers and prohibits them from treating their patients in accordance with well-established standards of care.

Additionally, the Attorney General promulgated the Emergency Rule almost a month
after announcing it, which undermines any supposed emergency basis for it, and only emphasizes the truth: there is no emergency.”

“Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s emergency order is a baseless and discriminatory attempt to limit the healthcare options for transgender individuals, who already face several barriers accessing necessary and life-saving medical care,” said Southampton Community Healthcare’s Dr. Samuel Tochtrop.  “It’s our privilege as Southampton Community Healthcare to fight this rule on behalf of transgender Missourians.” 

“This so-called emergency rule is an outrageous attack on basic healthcare for transgender people of all ages, and by imposing extreme restrictions on care for broad categories of Missouri’s transgender people, including adults, it represents a stunning expansion of efforts to target gender-affirming care.” said Nora Huppert, Lambda Legal Staff Attorney.  “It relies on debunked and misleading claims and makes a mockery of the phrase ‘evidence-based medicine.’  This unprecedented attempt to use Missouri’s consumer protection law to go after necessary and often life-saving healthcare must be stopped. We are honored to stand alongside our courageous plaintiffs in challenging this dangerous and harmful policy. We will defend the rights of transgender people and ensure access to necessary, evidence-based medical care.”  

“We applauded the courageous transgender Missourians, their families, and providers who came forward to share their stories to fight the Attorney General’s dangerous overreach,” said Katy Erker-Lynch, Executive Director of PROMO. “As the nation confronts an all-out attack on transgender rights and bodily autonomy, our gratitude goes to the skilled and compassionate attorneys taking on this case in the fight to protect human rights and bodily autonomy here in Missouri and across the country. We condemn the malicious and willful violence the Attorney General has committed against trans Missourians through his rulemaking and call for a moratorium on his relentless bigoted political posturing that put human lives at risk in his pursuit of power.” 

Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey issued an “emergency rule” Thursday that severely restricts access to guideline-directed gender-affirming healthcare for minors as well as adults in the state.

The rule was made under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act and is slated to take effect on April 27 after paperwork is filed with the Missouri Secretary of State’s office.

The state’s American Civil Liberties Union chapter and Lambda Legal promised to take “any necessary legal action” in a joint statement released hours after the rule was made public.

“The attorney general’s so-called emergency rule is based on distorted, misleading and debunked claims and ignores the overwhelming body of scientific and medical evidence supporting this care as well as the medical experts and doctors who work with transgender people every day,” the groups wrote.

Bailey’s restrictions go further than most anti-transgender policies that have been implemented in other conservative states, for example by requiring patients of all ages to complete 15 hourly sessions with a mental health professional over the course of 18-months and have a diagnosis of gender dysphoria for three “most recent, consecutive years” before treatment with puberty blockers, hormones or gender-transition surgery.

Trans Missourians with autism would be barred from accessing gender-affirming care, while those diagnosed with anxiety or depression would have to resolve those conditions beforehand. Patients who receive care would be required to complete 15 years of follow ups.

As activist and legislative researcher Erin Reed pointed out in her newsletter on the rule, “Many transgender people suffer from depression or anxiety before transitioning and gender-affirming care is the most effective treatment.”

Additionally, “To delay gender affirming care for three years for transgender adults is exceptionally cruel,” Reed wrote. “Most gender affirming care in America is done according to WPATH standards via informed consent and no forced waiting period.”

Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, urged his followers to call Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson to demand a rescission of the attorney general’s order.

Friends, this is a direct attack on healthcare for transgender ADULTS. If you support freedom & dignity for all, please act NOW. If you live in MO, call governor’s office to demand rescission of this order. Others, please donate to an LGBTQ legal organization. We need support. https://t.co/6X72qBR8qA

— Shannon Minter (@shannonminter5) April 13, 2023

Full statement by national LGBTQ Legal Groups condemning Missouri action barring healthcare for transgender people:

Today, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey issued an Emergency Rule regarding the medical treatment of transgender people. Lambda Legal, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Human Rights Campaign (HRC), and GLBTQ Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) issued the following statement.

As national legal groups who represent LGBTQ people and their families in every state across this country, we condemn the lawless action of Missouri’s Attorney General in purporting to bar essential medical care for both transgender adolescents and adults.

This action by Missouri’s Attorney General crosses a red line that should strike fear in the heart of every person who values individual liberty and believes that individuals, not government officials, should make health care decisions for their children and themselves.

This is a dangerous and unprecedented escalation in the assault on evidence-based health care for transgender people. Cutting off treatment for those who need it will create predictable, unnecessary, and serious harm. It is also a blatant attempt to strip transgender people of equal protection under the law and to subject them to intrusive government surveillance and control.

We wish to make unequivocally clear that we will challenge this and any similar attempt to interfere with the fundamental freedom of transgender people to obtain medically necessary care and to be treated as equal, respected, and participating members of our democracy.

Lambda Legal and the ACLU of Missouri are prepared to fight back in court and have announced their intention to take legal action against this order.

At this critical moment for our nation, we call on all freedom-loving people to join us in condemning this dangerous abuse of government power and to affirm that every person in this country is of equal value and worth and has an equal right to freedom from governmental coercion and tyranny. Transgender people are part of our communities, and we will not tolerate this or any other attempt to deny them the freedom to control their own lives and make decisions about their own medical care.  

JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced Monday that he has ordered implementation of a set of emergency rules that severely places restrictions on how healthcare providers in the state render gender-affirming care to minors.

In a statement released by his office Bailey wrote: “[my] office is issuing an emergency regulation clarifying that, because gender transition interventions are experimental, they are covered by existing Missouri law governing unfair, deceptive, and unconscionable business practices, including in administering healthcare services. The regulation is necessary due to the skyrocketing number of gender transition interventions, despite rising concerns in the medical community that these procedures are experimental and lack clinical evidence of safety or success.

“As Attorney General, I will protect children and enforce the laws as written, which includes upholding state law on experimental gender transition interventions. Even Europe recognizes that mutilating children for the sake of a woke, leftist agenda has irreversible consequences, and countries like Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom have all sharply curtailed these procedures. I am dedicated to using every legal tool at my disposal to stand in the gap and protect children from being subject to inhumane science experiments.”

PROMO Missouri, an LGBTQ public policy and advocacy group, said in a statement that the attorney general “does not have the right to politicize healthcare nor use transgender bodies as political pawns.”

PROMO also noted that gender-affirming care is not experimental, as the Attorney General suggested, but is a life-saving form of healthcare for trans youth.

The bodies of trans Missourians are not political pawns. @AGAndrewBailey is playing with the lives of trans kids and putting their very existence in danger with his actions. @PROMOMissouri will continue to defend trans youth and their access to vital, lifesaving healthcare. pic.twitter.com/aSSb5Zn92Q

— Robert Fischer (@_imPRessive_) March 20, 2023

St. Louis CBS News affiliate KMOV 4 reported that Dr. Colleen McNicholas, Chief Medical Officer with Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region and Southwest Missouri, said in a statement:

“Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s transphobia is an embarrassment to the Show-Me State. The politically driven claims made in the announcement are medically false and harmful. Scientific evidence shows — and the medical community agrees — that gender-affirming care is safe, effective, and life-saving.

“Bailey’s lack of medical expertise shows. His personal moral panic is inappropriately and unlawfully setting harmful policies that will hurt young transgender Missourians and their families. We denounce this government interference in the practice of medicine, and we demand politicians leave health care between providers and their patients. Shame on any politician who uses trans youth for political theatrics.”

Attorney General Bailey’s emergency regulation (see list below) will last 30 legislative days or 180 days, whichever is longer.

Because gender transition interventions are experimental, the regulation clarifies that state law already prohibits performing experimental procedures in the absence of specific guardrails. For gender transition interventions, those guardrails must include at least:

• Specific informed-consent disclosures informing patients that, among other things,
  • The use of puberty blocker drugs or cross-sex hormones to treat gender identity disorder or gender dysphoria is experimental and is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
  • The FDA has issued a warning that puberty blockers can lead to brain swelling and blindness
  • Sweden’s National Board of Health and Welfare (“NBHW”) recently declared that, at least for minors, “the risks of puberty suppressing treatment with GnRH-analogues and gender-affirming hormonal treatment currently outweigh the possible benefits”
  • One scientific study notes that an individual whose friend identifies as transgender is “more than 70 times” as likely to similarly identify as transgender, suggesting that many individuals “incorrectly believe themselves to be transgender and in need of transition” because of social factors
  • The Endocrine Society found that “the large majority (about 85%) of prepubertal children with a childhood diagnosis did not remain GD/gender incongruent in adolescence”
• Prohibiting gender transition interventions when the provider fails to,
  • ensure that the patient has received a full psychological or psychiatric assessment, consisting of not fewer than 15 separate, hourly sessions over the course of not fewer than 18 months to determine, among other things, whether the person has any mental health comorbidities
  • ensure that any existing mental health comorbidities of the patient have been treated and resolved
  • adopt and follow a procedure to track all adverse effects that arise from any course of covered gender transition intervention for all patients beginning the first day of intervention and continuing for a period of not fewer than 15 years
  • obtain and keep on file informed written consent
  • ensure that the patient has received a comprehensive screening to determine whether the patient has autism
  • ensure (at least annually) that the patient is not experiencing social contagion with respect to the patient’s gender identity

By Annelise Hanshaw | JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Republican state Sen. Mike Moon was adamant Tuesday that his bill  to prohibit teachers from talking about sexual orientation or gender identity is not a “don’t say gay” bill. 

But to Sen. Greg Razer, a Kansas City Democrat and the chamber’s only openly gay member, the label Moon chose for his bill didn’t matter. The policy he is trying to advance, Razer said, is “the most disrespectful bill I’ve ever seen in my seven years in this building.”

Senate Bill 134 is described as the most extreme “Don’t Say Gay” bill in the United States. SB 134 goes further than Florida’s Parental Rights in Education law.

“It’s hard not to take it personally,” Razer said during Tuesday’s Senate Education and Workforce Development hearing. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt more disrespected by a single piece of legislation than this one.”

Moon’s bill is similar to one passed last year in Florida that received national attention. Florida’s so-called “don’t say gay” law restricts classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in grades K-3 that goes beyond what the law defines as “developmentally appropriate.” 

The Missouri version is broader, impacting public and charter schools from grades K-12 and only allowing discussion of gender or sexual orientation by a licensed mental health provider with parental permission.

Moon titled his legislation the “Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act” after his belief that “exposure creates confusion.” During Tuesday’s hearing, he told a story of an unnamed student who allegedly was counseled regarding gender identity or sexual orientation and had suicidal thoughts.

It is not clear from Moon’s story whether suicidal ideation was an effect of counseling, another environmental factor or mental illness.

Missouri State Sen. Greg Razer, a Kansas City Democrat and one of Missouri’s few openly gay lawmakers told reporters after the hearing: “I don’t think I’ve ever felt more disrespected by a single piece of legislation than this one,” Razer added “[that SB134] is the most disrespectful bill I’ve ever seen in my seven years in this building.”

Andy Schuerman, a 15-year school counselor and director of school counseling at the Park Hill School District, said LGBTQ youth are at a higher risk of suicide.

“As a school counselor, I sat with many who were so afraid that their parents would reject them as they struggled with their sexual orientation or gender identity,” he told the committee Tuesday. “Censoring what students can share with school professionals will only endanger their lives and increase the risk that they will harm themselves.”

Razer argued that LGBTQ students are the vulnerable children legislators should be compassionate for, and he harkened back to his upbringing as a gay child in a small Missouri town.

“I don’t know what vulnerable child you’re trying to be compassionate to, but it sure wasn’t me in Cooter, Missouri. I needed to hear something positive,” he said.

Timothy Faber, a lobbyist for the Missouri Baptist Convention, parental permission is required for field trips, so it should be required to discuss sensitive matters.

“The same aversion to liability should be applied when it comes to matters of the child’s gender or sexual orientation,” he said.

Razer said not all parents make good choices for their children, giving an example of a childhood friend who was not allowed to watch a show depicting a Black family.

“What’s the difference between teaching about or talking about African Americans and talking about me?” Razer said.

Faber answered: “A person’s skin color, they were born this way.”

“I guarantee you,” Razer said, “I was born this way and whether or not you like that, I’m here.”

Sen. Lauren Arthur, D-Kansas City, questioned Moon about whether, as a teacher and straight woman, she could talk about her husband.

“Your bill is so badly written,” she said, indicating it reads like sexuality and relationships as a whole were unmentionable. “Your intent is different than what the bill says.”

Moon said he only meant to ban talking about LGBTQ relationships.

The committee did not take any action on the bill Tuesday. Though the hearing room and hallway outside was crowded with people waiting to testify, the hearing on the bill was limited to 45 minutes.

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ANNELISE HANSHAW writes about education — a beat she has covered on both the West and East Coast while working for daily newspapers in Santa Barbara, California, and Greenwich, Connecticut. A born-and-raised Missourian, she is proud to be back in her home state.

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The preceding article was previously published by The Missouri Independent and is republished with permission.

The Missouri Independent is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization dedicated to relentless investigative journalism and daily reporting that sheds light on state government and its impact on the lives of Missourians. This service is free to readers and other news outlets.

ST. LOUIS – The FBI has joined the investigation into violent threats of bombs and shootings against three LGBTQ+ bars in the Grove neighborhood of St. Louis this past weekend. A fourth threat against a children’s playground and adult café that was scheduled to hold a drag queen story hour is also being looked into by the FBI.

The three establishments, PRISM STL, Just John, and Rehab, are all located on Manchester Avenue in the city’s trendy Grove neighborhood and entertainment district. According to St. Louis’ alternative weekly press outlet The Riverfront Times, late Saturday afternoon, the bars received calls from an individual threatening violence.

Around 4 p.m. at Prism, bartender Jordan Cox answered the phone. “The caller off the bat started talking about how they were the Joker, and they were going to blow up the bar, send bombs and shoot up everybody,” Cox said, adding that it sounded like at least two people were on the other line.

Just John bar owner John Arnold said he received a voicemail around the same time.

“They said they were going to come in at 3 a.m. and burn the place down,” Arnold says. “And that they were fed up with us ‘fags’.” The same voicemail named a Just John employee whom the caller liked. “They told us to make sure he wasn’t there,” Arnold added.

St. Louis NBC affiliate KSDK NBC 5 reported that a bartender at Michael Klataske and Sean Abernathy’s bar PRISM actually spoke to the suspect.

In the incident regarding the fourth location, CBS affiliate KMOV 4 reported that the FBI is also investigating threats against a children’s playground and adult café called Urban Fort in South City. The owner said they received violent threats and were forced to tighten security and change the date, time and location of a scheduled story time lesson featuring a drag performer.

Since September, the FBI has been on heightened alert over violence against LGBTQ+ facilities, groups and events. A threat assessment distributed by the Department of Homeland Security after November Club Q mass-shooting in Colorado Springs warned that hate criminals and violent domestic extremists could increase threats to the LGBTQ+ community “due to their responses to legislative or societal changes in the United States.” related to LGBTQ+ issues, and conspiracy theories involving the LGBTQ+ community.”

In the bulletin issued by DHS, the HSI agency noted: “Some domestic violent extremists who have conducted attacks have cited previous attacks and attackers as inspiration. Following the late November shooting at an LGBTQI+ bar in Colorado Springs, Colorado—which remains under investigation—we have observed actors on forums known to post racially or ethnically motivated violent extremist content praising the alleged attacker.

Similarly, some domestic violent extremists in the United States praised an October 2022 shooting at a LGBTQI+ bar in Slovakia and encouraged additional violence. The attacker in Slovakia posted a manifesto online espousing white supremacist beliefs and his admiration for prior attackers, including some within the United States.”

The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement, “The investigation is ongoing.”