Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government, today delivered the following opening statement, as prepared, during a hearing on “The Dangers and Due Process Violations of 'Gender-Affirming Care' for Children.”

Find the full clip of Ranking Member Scanlon’s opening statement here.

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Let’s be clear. Congress has no business interfering in parents’ freedom to make decisions about appropriate medical care for their children. The idea that politicians are more qualified to judge the medical value or necessity of gender-affirming care than every major medical organization is absurd.

“Holding a hearing to substitute far-right ideologies over parental judgment exposes the rank hypocrisy of the party claiming to value individual freedom and small government. And before the subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government, no less. 

“Make no mistake, today’s hearing is not about protecting children's or parents’ rights. It is a cynical and dangerous political attack on transgender children and their families. It is not driven by science or facts, but by polling and political strategists determined to mobilize conservative voters through fear.

“Let me start by setting the record straight. Gender-affirming care is safe and effective. It is supported by every major medical association, including the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Medical Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, among others, representing more than 1.3 million American doctors. It’s not up for debate.

“The partisans who characterize gender-affirming care as “radical gender ideology” are just repeating right-wing talking points to delegitimize critical health care. Access to gender-affirming care is critical to the mental health and well-being of trans youth. The care is tailored to the mental and physical health needs of patients, as well as to their developmental stage of life. Parents and guardians of these children are involved in every phase of decision-making. There is nothing “radical” about that.

“When our Republican colleagues allege that gender-affirming care raises particular dangers or due process issues, that is fear-mongering at its worst – picking on already vulnerable kids in order to stir up chaos that they hope to ride to success at the ballot box – no matter how deceitful and dangerous those claims. 

“As a mother of three, I certainly never found myself at my children’s pediatric appointments wishing for medical advice from the House Judiciary Committee. As a member of Congress, I am appalled by the weaponization of our legislative process to inject politicians into the personal medical decisions of our constituents’ families.

“I strongly oppose any effort to impose ultra-conservative political or religious views on the medical decisions of American families – whether on matters of reproductive health care or a parent’s decision to seek gender-affirming care for a child. I know that Americans can be trusted to make their own health care decisions without politicians invading their doctors’ offices. And I believe parents and doctors when they say that gender-affirming care has changed children’s lives for the better – and in many cases, even saved those lives.

“Parents like a mother of a trans teen from Ohio, who shared her family’s story with the committee. She told us that because her 17-year-old trans daughter had access to evidence-based, medically necessary, gender-affirming care, puberty was just another phase of her normal and healthy adolescence.

“She said, and I quote, ‘Forcing her to go through the wrong puberty and seeing the impact on her body [and] her mental health would have been agonizing for all of us…. I don’t understand why we would allow politicians to make medical decisions for our children.’

“She’s right. Banning access to gender-affirming care would violate parents’ due process rights. And the federal courts agree. They agree that banning gender-affirming care for minors violates constitutionally protected parental rights – and that politicians should stay out of those decisions.

“I want to close by reminding my colleagues how much their words matter. By endorsing falsehoods and bullying tactics, members of Congress are helping to promote a culture of discrimination that has led to a rise in violence against trans kids and their parents. Cynical political opportunists should not be allowed to use the megaphone of the House Judiciary Committee to promote cruelty and disinformation, particularly when we know that it invites discrimination and abuse of trans children and their families. 

“I must object to this callous and reckless use of this committee’s time.”

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