Texas Nurses Association Statement On Interpretation of Gender-Affirming Care as Child Abuse

For Immediate Release

February 23, 2021

Contact:

Lisa Maxwell
Texas Nurses Association
lmaxwell@texasnurses.org

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Texas Nurses Association Statement On Interpretation of Gender-Affirming Care as Child Abuse

Potential for far-reaching negative consequences for children, families, medical professionals.

Austin, TX — On February 18, 2022, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued an opinion letter interpreting “whether the performance of certain medical and chemical procedures on children… constitute child abuse.” The opinion letter concludes that various gender-affirming healthcare procedures “can legally constitute child abuse under several provisions of chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code.” On February 22, Texas Governor Greg Abbott sent a letter to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services directing the agency and all other state agencies to enforce the Texas Family Code according to the attorney general’s opinion letter.

These letters do not reflect the policy position of the Texas Nurses Association. TNA advocates for quality, evidence-based, culturally congruent health care for transgender and gender diverse youth and their families. TNA condemns actions or acts that create health disparities such as social marginalization, discrimination, and denial of civic and human rights based on gender identity and gender expression, which directly contributes to poor physical and mental health outcomes and results in increased illness and higher mortality rates within the TGD youth population.

It is unfortunate that the executive branch of the state of Texas interprets the law to impose a duty to report gender-affirming healthcare as child abuse. This will have negative consequences on the psychological and physical health of TGD youth and their families. It will also produce a chilling effect in healthcare, imposing ambiguous legal consequences on medical professionals’ independent judgments of how to care for their patients.

This may lead to prosecutions or actions against professionals’ licenses if they provide gender-affirming healthcare, increasing burdens on both medical professionals and the judicial system. Nurses and the public must be aware of the legal impact of these letters, even if their rationale does not reflect TNA’s policy position. These letters inform the public about how the executive branch intends to enforce chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code and related criminal provisions of the Texas Penal Code. Nurses should seek legal advice from their employers or attorneys if they are unclear on how these letters affect their practice.