Trial dates set for case over Missouri law banning gender-affirming care for minors
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A bench trial has been scheduled for a case surrounding a Missouri law that bans gender-affirming care for minors and some adults.
The 10-day trial schedule was decided on Thursday and is set to begin Sept. 23, according to Casenet. The ACLU had announced the lawsuit on July 25 after Gov. Mike Parson signed Senate Bill 49 into law, which bans access to gender-affirming care, such as puberty blockers and hormones to children, who are younger than 18 years old. The bill also prohibits Missouri’s Medicaid program, MO HealthNet, from providing payment for gender transition surgery and puberty blockers.
The lawsuit involves the families of transgender children from St. Louis County who were diagnosed with gender dysphoria – according to court documents -- as well as Southampton Community Healthcare, medical providers and the group GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality. The lawsuit names Parson, Attorney General Andrew Bailey and other state officials as defendants.
The lawsuit claims the law violates multiple clauses of the Missouri Constitution, including the Equal Protection Clause, the Natural Rights and Due Process Clauses, the Right to the Enjoyment of the Gains of Their Own Industry Clause and the Special Law Limitation.
The law has led to other legal showdowns. MU Health Care said in August that it would stop prescribing or administering puberty-delaying drugs or hormone replacement therapy to transgender minors. A pair of Boone County families sued MU Health in November, claiming MU Health was violating the Affordable Care Act.
