Over more than an hour, witnesses testified to the House Health Committee that a bill eliminating options for youths seeking hormone treatment for gender dysphoria would result in increased risk of self harm or suicide.
“I do not want to see them back in my unit with asphyxiation marks. I don’t want to see them overdosing. This is not about an agenda other than patient care. So that’s why I’m here,” said Dr. Katie Waldeck, a pediatric critical care physician in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at Cabell Huntington Hospital.
This marks the third time in three years that West Virginia lawmakers have focused on this issue, including passage of a 2023 bill that banned gender surgery for minors but continued to allow treatment with medication under narrowly-tailored circumstances.
That bill still allowed treatment with medication if a minor has been diagnosed with gender dysphoria by two doctors, if the doctors express written opinions that the treatment is medically necessary to limit self-harm or harm to others, if the minor and their parents or legal guardians agree, and if the medications are the lowest dose necessary.
The 2023 bill was passed into law and revisited last year, although the attempt to revise it failed.
This year’s Senate Bill 299 would close the exceptions, forbidding the use of specific kinds of medication to be used for gender transition for minors.
Violations are considered unprofessional conduct and could be subject to discipline by licensing agencies — with legal recourse available, including actions by the Attorney General.
The bill passed the Senate several weeks ago and is now under consideration by the House of Delegates during the final week of the regular legislative session. The House Health Committee heard an explanation and testimony on Monday evening and could vote as soon as Tuesday on whether to advance it.
Everyone who testified on Monday evening spoke against the bill.
Waldeck told delegates that early in her career, noticed that a disproportionate number of the children who needed her care after suicide attempts identified as trans or non binary. As she read more, she discovered that observation was backed by academic research.
“So in the most recent data we have, about 25% to 29% of children who identify as trans or non binary report a serious suicide attempt within the last year,” she said.
She said youths who may still be treated with hormone therapy under the current West Virginia law have already been identified as being at risk.
“And I have a great amount of fear about what will happen if the exemptions to this bill are lifted,” Waldeck said.
“I don’t know how many of you have spoken to a parent of a trans child, but the overwhelming emotion is one of fear. These families are afraid that their child will die period. They are not seeking anything other than help from their physicians.”
Dr. Patrick Kerr, representing the West Virginia Psychological Association, told the committee that much of his work has been focused on suicide prevention.
“Research has established that transgender teens experience higher rates of depression, higher rates of anxiety, suicidality, non-suicidal self injury, higher rates of substance use disorders, including alcohol use disorders and disordered eating,” Kerr said.
He said research consistently demonstrates life changing benefits for transgender teens who receive gender affirming hormone treatment, including 40% lower risk of depression and suicide attempts.
“To be clear, seeking gender affirming care, including gender affirming hormone treatment, is not the right choice for everyone. No one is saying that. No one has ever said that that is the right choice for every individual,” Kerr said.
“This decision involves individualized treatment based on individualized decisions, and it’s a decision that must be made by families in consultation with trusted and qualified health care professionals. Senate Bill 299 eliminates choices for teens and their families. I urge you to allow for families to retain their freedom to choose the right health care for their child by opposing this bill.”
Halle Stewart, representing the West Virginia chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, expressed concern about the removal of the already narrow exception for mental health in Senate Bill 299.
“This bill will put lives at risk, point blank,” Stewart said.