He revealed this plan during a May 2 appearance on "The Truth with Lisa Boothe," telling the Fox News contributor and journalist that he would ban sex-change operation for kids.
"You can't get a tattoo if you're 12 years old. When they say 'gender-affirming care,' what they mean a lot of times is you are really castrating a young boy, sterilizing a young girl [and] doing mastectomies for these very young girls," the Republican governor said.
"You're doing things that are permanently altering them, and then they're not [going to] be able to reverse that. So I don't think it's appropriate for kids at all." (Related: Transgenders increasingly want to revert back to original gender after having surgery.)
DeSantis' remark came as a response to Boothe's question whether he would take recommendations against gender transition by the Florida Department of Health (FDH) a step further. The guidance issued by the FDH on April 20 noted that "the current evidence does not support the use of puberty blockers, hormone treatments or surgical procedures for children and adolescents."
"This was never about health care, [but] about injecting political ideology into the health of our children. Children experiencing gender dysphoria should be supported by family and seek counseling, not pushed into an irreversible decision before they reach 18," said Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo.
The governor backed Ladapo's guidelines during the May 2 interview, but added that additional safeguards are needed.
"[While] I think the guidance is right, there should be additional protections. Because when you're growing up – there are things that, you know, [happen at] an awkward time. It seems like there's a concerted effort in society to push these kids to do some type of medical intervention and, in our judgment, that's not healthy," said DeSantis.
Florida bill outlawing gender transition surgeries fails to gain ground
Ladapo's April 20 guidance against medical procedures for gender transition highlighted the "potentially irreversible consequences" of the latter – which include cardiovascular disease, infertility and increased cancer risk.
He also mentioned that the pre-frontal cortex of the brain develops from the onset of puberty until approximately 25 years of age. Furthermore, 80 percent of those seeking medical care for their gender dysphoria will lose their desire to identify with the non-birth sex – a fact DeSantis touched on in his interview.
The GOP governor expressed enthusiasm in signing legislation that bans gender transition surgeries. But such proposals are yet to land on his desk, with one bill being blocked in the Florida House of Representatives.
House Bill (HB) 211, introduced by State Rep. Anthony Sabatini in September 2021, is one such legislation. Also known as the Vulnerable Child Protection Act, it outlaws surgeries that remove the sexual organs or "any otherwise healthy or non-disease body part or tissue" of minors. It also bans administering, supplying or prescribing transgender hormone drugs, such as cross-sex hormones or puberty blockers to children with gender disorders.
Under the proposal, medical professionals who perform sex change procedures or cause them to be performed on minors will risk committing a first degree misdemeanor. Erring doctors could face up to a year in jail and $1,000 fines. However, the bill does not encompass "good faith medical decision" from parents regarding a child with a "genetic disorder of sex development."
However, deliberation for HB 211 was indefinitely postponed in March 2022 with the bill being withdrawn from consideration. It was killed off in the Florida House's Professions and Public Health Subcommittee in the same month.
Sabatini rebuked other state GOP lawmakers who refused to stand up for HB 211 and other conservative bills, dubbing them as "too afraid to fight."
"These so-called 'local appropriation projects' are the corrupt political currency used by the [GOP] establishment to control and bully weak members. [Funding] is based on whether members keep their mouths shut and abandon their conservative beliefs, or whether they do not. Cowardly and obedient representatives that do exactly what they are told will get their projects funded. Meanwhile, [those] that have the courage to speak up and fight for what's right do not get their projects funded," he tweeted.
MedicalViolence.com has more stories about gender transition surgeries and their health risks.
Watch this footage of a "trans-affirming" doctor rationalizing gender transition surgeries for adolescents below.
This video is from the Truth or Consequences channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Transgender HHS nominee Rachel Levine wants babies to get sex changes without parental consent.
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