In April, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a law that prohibits doctors from asking minor patients questions about gender identity. It takes effect in October. There is still time to stop it.

House Bill 1665 does not just restrict gender-affirming care. It restricts conversation. It requires doctors to notify parents before asking children any "sensitive" gender-related questions and prohibits insurance companies from including gender questions on medical questionnaires. The law is based on the claim that asking a child a yes or no question about their gender identity can cause them to become transgender. The Tennessee Equality Project and the Human Rights Campaign reviewed the evidence for that claim. There is none.

What there is evidence for is harm. Tennessee law currently allows physicians to screen LGBTQ+ minors for high-risk behaviors including substance abuse and exposure to sexually transmitted diseases. Those screenings depend on doctors being able to ask questions about gender and sexual identity. Under HB 1665, those screenings could be blocked. A doctor who cannot ask a child about their gender cannot fully assess their health risks, cannot connect them to appropriate services, and cannot provide the kind of care that keeps vulnerable young people alive.

"Asking minors objective questions about gender identity is necessary to access developmentally appropriate and life-saving health prevention services," said Bean Chapman, legislative analyst for the Tennessee Equality Project. "This shameful law will have dire consequences for minors rejected by their families and those whose only access to mental health is with their doctor."

This is not a law that protects children. It is a law that prevents their doctors from fully caring for them. It contradicts existing Tennessee statutes, conflicts with insurer data requirements, and has no basis in medical evidence. Representative Justin Pearson, speaking during debate, called the legislation a barrier to "intentional, meaningful conversations with children who may be experiencing gender dysphoria."

We are calling on Governor Lee to repeal HB 1665 before it takes effect in October. We are also calling on the Tennessee Medical Association and the American Medical Association to formally oppose the law, file legal challenges to its constitutionality, and make clear to the state legislature that restricting physician speech in the exam room is not public policy. It is medical censorship.

Sign to demand the repeal of HB 1665 and the protection of every child's right to honest medical care.