22 states so far have passed restrictions on minors' access to transgender procedures, and in Maryland, which is one of only five states that allows 12-year-olds to consent to medical procedures without parental knowledge or consent, HB 772 has been introduced in the lower legislative chamber.
It would require parental consent for minors seeking to do the impossible, to change to the opposite gender. If approved, anyone who authorizes or provides "gender-affirming care" to minors could be found guilty of a misdemeanor and sentenced to prison for one to three years.
Jeffrey Trimbath of the Maryland Family Institute says it just makes sense to protect children.
"Kids in Maryland cannot get an aspirin without their parent's permission," he notes. "They can't get a tattoo without their parent's permission, so certainly, they ought to have their parent's permission to undergo gender transition treatments, whether that's hormones or surgeries."
Democrats have a supermajority in the state, and Governor Wes Moore is a Democrat as well, but the bill's sponsors include 16 Republicans and three Democrats in the House of Delegates. In most cases, the parties are split on this issue, with Democrats typically favoring transgender-affirming policy for minors.
Considering the irreversible damage these manipulative and mutilative procedures do to children, Trimbath does not think the bill should be a matter of politics.
"The fact that it is a bipartisan bill shows just how far the radical Left has gone in Maryland and that they're starting to get pushback by some members of their own caucus," he submits. "We welcome that."
Trimbath commends the citizens for letting their elected representatives know they have gone too far.
