Update March 22, 2024: Speaking Out Against the Anti-Trans Ohio DOH Rules
On January 5, 2024, Governor Mike DeWine signed Executive Order 2024-01D, implementing a rule drafted by the Department of Health that bans gender-affirming surgery for transgender minors in the state of Ohio (3701-59-06 and 3701-83-60). HB 68 ban on gender affirming surgery will supersede this emergency rule on April 24th 2024.
At the same time, the Governor proposed administrative rules drafted by the Department of Health restricting transgender care for all Ohioans, no matter their age. These non-emergency rules proposed by the Department of Health were open for public comment from January 5 to February 5. As a result of significant public resistance, the non-emergency rules were amended to remove all restrictions on adults and significantly loosen restrictions on minor care
These changed non emergency rules are currently being considered by various bureaucratic agencies to get the whole package worked into law.
These regulations are restrictions even with the changes and DSA is committed to pressuring health department bureaucrats to oppose the restrictions until their file date on April 20th 2024.
On this page
- Make Public Comment Email Template
- Ohio Department of Health Proposed Rules
- ODH Notice of Hearing
- Ohio Mental Health and Addiction Services Notice of Hearing
Make Public Comment
Mental Health and Addiction Services Deadline passed
- March 18th by 5pm
- Email: MH-SOT-GTC2-rules@mha.ohio.gov
- Subject Line: Testimony for Public Hearing March 18
Department of Health Deadline passed
- March 21st 11:30am-1pm
- Email: Alicyn.Carrel@odh.ohio.gov
- Subject Line: Testifying in Public Hearing March 21
- Submit written testimony or attend on Microsoft teams
- Meeting ID: 249 987 672 891 Passcode: CodQw9
Feel free to personalize or just use the main points of this script
Hello, my name is [NAME], I’m an Ohio resident. I’m calling (writing) today on the new rules on gender transition care. Even after the first round of public comment, these rules continue to restrict life-saving care for youth.
- Requiring minors to undergo a 6 month waiting period to start treatment is unnecessary. Many people cannot afford or have access to the type of specialists required by these rules, especially poor or rural families.
- Clinics will be overburdened by meeting the requirement for an endocrinologist and psychologist experienced with children who show a “demonstrably active role in the minor individual’s care.” Even finding a qualified practitioner for referral will be difficult for many clinics that don’t have large hospitals nearby.
- The quick turnaround (30 business days) for reporting the start, change, or stop of transition-related care is also an undue burden on clinics. These rules hurt already vulnerable Ohioans and will only exacerbate health disparities because smaller clinics will not be able to ensure legal compliance.
- These rules have negative impacts on business in Ohio. The Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services Business Impact Analysis demonstrates that by applying these rules equally to large and small clinics, smaller clinics will have to incur greater administrative costs. These will likely end up being labor related costs in a field that is already struggling to meet staffing demands.
- The sections prohibiting “direct or indirect referrals” for gender reassignment surgery for minor patients are exceptionally broad and would outlaw even mentioning transition surgeries as a possibility. Trans children can’t know of their existence, and will not be able to imagine a future where they can feel comfortable in their body under these rules.
While the rules on collecting health information are more clear, they are an extreme government overreach into private medical decisions and rely on the whims of the director of health to protect the privacy of a minority population under attack.
These regulations may seem like protections, or improvements, but they are proposed in bad faith. These rules will cause clinics to close, prevent vulnerable youth from accessing life-saving healthcare, and surveil trans people in Ohio. Please reject these proposed rules.