Des Moines, Iowa — Governor Kim Reynolds says she intends to sign legislation to prohibit Iowa doctors from performing gender transition surgeries or prescribing puberty blockers to minors.
Reynolds says she won’t be surprised if there’s a lawsuit filed as soon as she signs the bill, but the governor says she has an obligation to hit pause until there is more data about the long-term effects of childhood gender transitions. Reynolds says age-based restrictions are nothing new in Iowa law.
The American Medical Association says it’s inappropriate and harmful for any state to limit the range of care for transgender children. The parents of some transgender kids have said they may have to move out of Iowa to maintain treatment plans for their children.
Reynolds made her comments Tuesday during a news conference in Des Moines. Seven other states have policies in place that ban gender transition care for minors. On Monday, Missouri’s attorney general said he would issue an emergency order requiring an 18-month waiting period and treatment of any mental illnesses before Missouri doctors could provide transgender care to children.
