GOP amendment... has been turned against them to protect trans rights

[Jessica_Rose]

GOP amendment attacking Obamacare has been turned against them to protect trans rights

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/gop-amendment-attacking-obamacare-has-been-turned-against-them-to-protect-trans-rights/ar-BB1kTeOb?ocid=windirect&cvid=c6354cc56164495cafd0ba21fc023708&ei=24

Story by Molly Sprayregen (1 April 2024)

The ACLU of Ohio has filed a lawsuit alleging that a Republican-backed amendment to the state constitution makes the state's ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth unconstitutional.

Republicans passed the amendment in 2011 as part of their efforts to block the Affordable Care Act. In an attempt to combat a portion of the legislation that requires most Americans to have health insurance, it states that no law at the federal, state, or local level can "compel, directly or indirectly, any person, employer or health care provider to participate in a health care system."

But another line of the amendment declares, "No federal, state, or local law or rule shall impose a penalty or fine for the sale or purchase of health care or health insurance." In their suit, attorneys from the ACLU of Ohio argue that gender-affirming care falls under the definition of health care and thus, folks cannot be penalized for obtaining it based on this constitutional guarantee.

Among other violations, the lawsuit also argues that Ohio's ban on gender-affirming care violates the state constitution's single-subject rule, which says individual bills must only cover one subject. The health care ban not only prohibits gender-affirming care for trans minors but also bans trans women and girls from participating in scholastic sports.