Government control over transgender people’s bodies?
In England, the National Health Service (NHS) has stopped prescribing puberty blockers for minors (or those under 18 years old) with gender dysphoria or gender incongruence, stating that there is “not enough evidence to support the safety or clinical effectiveness of (puberty-suppressing hormones) to make the treatment routinely available at this time”.
Puberty blockers halt the physical changes that puberty brings in a young person’s body, including the development of breasts or facial hair. As FYI: puberty blocking – a noninvasive therapy – can be reversed.
With the new decision, services caring for those with gender dysphoria and are under 18 will no longer be able to use them as part of treatments. Only those who are part of clinical trials will be able to get them.
This decision is part of NHS’s overhaul of children’s gender identity services in England.