JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri’s Republican attorney general on Monday said he will limit access to gender-affirming care for minors, sidestepping the GOP-led Senate as it struggles to pass a law banning the practice for children completely.
As hundreds of activists rallied at the Capitol to pressure lawmakers to act on the bill, Attorney General Andrew Bailey announced plans to file an emergency rule.
The rule will require an 18-month waiting period, 15 hour-long therapy sessions and treatment of any mental illnesses before Missouri doctors can provide that kind of care to transgender children, according to Bailey’s office.
“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,” Bailey said.
The emergency rule also requires disclosure of information about puberty blocker drugs, including that they are experimental, not approved by the FDA and that the FDA has warned they can lead to brain swelling and blindness, Bailey said.
While puberty blockers and hormones often prescribed in transgender treatment are not FDA approved for transgender care, they are used in those cases “off-label,” which is an accepted and permitted practice.
This is not the first time Bailey has weighed in on transgender health care since taking office in January.
In February, Bailey announced an investigation of a transgender youth clinic in St. Louis run by Washington University, following allegations of abuse by a former employee. He asked the university to shut down the clinic, but it refused.
Bailey’s spokeswoman did not say when the new health care rule will be filed and did not provide a copy.
Maysa Akbar, chief diversity officer for the American Psychological Association, called the rule “a disturbing development for transgender and gender-nonconforming youth in Missouri.”
“This emergency order flies in the face of the scientific consensus, which is that, with appropriate psychological screening, treatment approaches should affirm an adolescent’s gender identity, not deny it,” Akbar said.
“Research shows that discrimination has adverse effects on the health and well-being of transgender people.”