Kansas legislature sends ban on gender-affirming care for minors to Democratic governor’s desk

Kansas’ Republican-controlled legislature has advanced a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors to the governor’s desk.

Kansas’ Republican-controlled legislature has advanced a bill that would ban gender-affirming care for minors to the governor’s desk. The Senate voted 27-13 on Wednesday after the House voted 82-39 earlier in the day to advance the measure. The measure now awaits a decision from Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly, who vetoed a similar measure last year. GOP lawmakers were then unable to override the governor’s veto. The state Senate passed the bill Wednesday with a veto-proof majority while the House, which had multiple absences, was two votes shy. Two absent Republican state representatives previously voted in favor of the legislation. CNN has reached out to the governor’s office for comment. With the passage, Kansas joins at least 20 states that have moved to curb gender-affirming care for minors as transgender rights have become a marquee issue for the Republican Party. Several legal challenges over such restrictions are playing out across the country, which has placed intense pressure on the Supreme Court to step into the charged debate. The measure would ban gender-affirming care for trans and nonbinary youth in Kansas, including puberty blockers and surgeries, though surgical procedures are rarely performed on children.