Parents of Georgia transgender children suing to stop law banning gender-affirming care for minors

ATLANTA — Several Georgia families filed a federal lawsuit Thursday night to stop a new state law that would ban certain treatments for transgender children.

Channel 2 Action News broke the lawsuit Thursday on WSB Tonight at 11 p.m.

The law banning doctors from treating children with hormone therapy or gender-affirming surgery is set to go into effect on Saturday.

Under the law, transgender children currently receiving these medical procedures would be able to continue them, but no new children can begin those procedures.

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Plaintiffs who filed the suit say the law violates parents’ rights to make medical decisions in the best interest of their children and it “singles out transgender minors for the denial of essential medical care.”

The lawsuit, which was filed against members of the Georgia Department of Community Health and the Georgia Composite Medical Board, is asking a federal judge to put the law on hold before it can take effect.

RELATED STORIES:

• Doctors says new law banning gender-affirming care for minors is about politics, not health
• These new laws will go into effect on July 1
• Bill banning some treatments for transgender kids signed into law by Gov. Kemp

Channel 2′s Richard Elliot has been following developments in the transgender care law, which was passed during this legislative session and signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp in March.

In a statement posted to Twitter in March, Kemp said he wanted to protect the health and well-being of Georgia’s children.

Republican lawmakers insist they are trying to protect transgender children from medical procedures that cannot be changed.

But critics insisted the bill will only hurt those children, both mentally and physically.

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Bill banning some treatments for transgender kids signed into law by Gov. Kemp

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