Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signs executive order restricting healthcare for transgender Ohioans

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has signed an executive order banning “gender transition surgeries” for transgender Ohioans under the age of 18 – which children’s hospitals repeatedly testified are not performed at any hospital or ambulatory clinic in the state.

Last week, DeWine vetoed Ohio House Bill 68 – an anti-transgender bill that would have banned access to healthcare for transgender youth and banned transgender girls from competing in sports from kindergarten through college.

Since then, DeWine has faced intense backlash from conservative Republican lawmakers, including former president Trump. Ohio lawmakers plan to return from break early next week to override the governor’s veto via a supermajority in the House and Senate.

During a press conference Friday morning, DeWine defended his decision to veto the bill – which rejects the general medical consensus of every major medical organization in the world and is based on model legislation drafted by designated anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups. In its place, the governor proposed a set of “post-veto administrative rules,” restricting access to healthcare for transgender youth.

In addition to an executive order banning gender-affirming surgeries and surgical procedures for transgender youth without exception, the governor also issued a new set of administrative rules that could further restrict access to healthcare for even more transgender Ohioans, including adults.

Banning “gender transition surgeries” for transgender youth

While DeWine’s executive order bans “gender transition surgeries” for transgender youth, the governor acknowledged that gender-affirming surgeries are not currently performed on minors at any healthcare facility in the state of Ohio.

“If we look at evidence, there is very little that [surgery for minors] is occurring – so let’s make sure,” he said. “This will assure that surgeries of this type will never happen in Ohio.”

“I think it’s a good way to take this issue off the table and assure everyone that there are not surgeries going on with minors,” he told reporters.

Additionally, the governor noted public testimony provided by the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association’s (OCHA) confirming that gender-affirming surgeries and surgical procedures are not performed on minors at any children’s hospital in the state.

In a written statement released via social media, LGBTQ+ advocacy group Equality Ohio called the executive order unnecessary: “…across the board, Ohio clinics are already not providing gender affirming surgical care to minors.”

What’s in the executive order?

During DeWine’s Jan. 5 press conference, the governor announced an executive order calling for “the immediate adoption of rules 3701-59-06 and 3701-83-60 of the Ohio Administrative Code.”

While the governor publicly outlined the rules, their full text has not been made public.

According to information provided directly by the governor during the press conference, the proposed administrative rules will:

• “[Require] a multidisciplinary team to support an individual through care, such as endocrinologists, bioethicists and psychiatrists.”
• [Require] a care plan and informed consent of the risk associated with treatment,” along with “a requirement of lengthy and comprehensive mental health counseling.”
• Require the healthcare providers to share “de-identified” data around gender-affirming healthcare with the Ohio Department of Health (ODH).

“These are some holes that are clear to me that need to be filled,” DeWine told reporters. “We need data. We have it on almost everything else in the medical field.”

Restricting healthcare for transgender adults

For transgender adults, DeWine’s executive order could result in more restrictions around transgender Ohioans’ access to healthcare, particularly around hormone replacement therapies (HRT).

The order could also potentially restrict when and where transgender adults are able to access outpatient surgical procedures like top surgeries or facial feminization procedures.

“The Ohio Department of Health and the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services today will be filing rules for public comment that will provide protections for children and adults receiving care in hospitals and clinics,” DeWine said during the press conference. 

On several occasions, the governor has mentioned “fly-by-night clinics” that could “[provide] medical care to adults without standards of medical care.”

The Buckeye Flame has not been able to confirm the existence of any such clinics in the state of Ohio.

Overriding the governor’s veto

Lawmakers plan to return from holiday recess early next Wednesday to override Gov. DeWine’s veto via a supermajority in both the Ohio House and Senate.

Many conservative lawmakers have already expressed their intention to override the governor’s veto, including the bill’s primary sponsor, Baptist pastor Rep. Gary Click (R, Fremont).

“We fully intend to override the governor’s veto beginning on January 10,” Click said in a statement released Friday. 

Other voting members include HB 68 co-sponsors Rep. Jena Powell (R, Arcanum) Rep. Joshua Williams (R, Oregon) and Rep. Derek Merrin (R, Monclova) – who each have strong links to the Center for Christian Virtue (CCV).

The Columbus-based Christian nationalist organization met the Southern Poverty Law Center’s criteria as a designated anti-LGBTQ+ hate group between 2015-2017, and has played a major role in crafting anti-transgender legislation and testimony at the Ohio Statehouse since at least 2021.

“I’ve stated my position very clearly that the parents should be involved [in their child’s medical care], not the state of Ohio. That’s why I vetoed the bill,” DeWine said. “I made the decision. It was the right decision, as far as I’m concerned. Everyone can look at the facts and make their own decision. I knew how the legislature had voted before, so I fully expected [the backlash].”

“Whatever the legislature does, we’re going through with this,” the governor told reporters. “[The Ohio House] will do what they think is best.” 🔥

---

Ignite Action

• To register to vote or to check your voter eligibility status in the state of Ohio, click here.
• To find contact information for your Ohio state representative, click here.
• To find contact information for your Ohio senator, click here.
• To access the full Trans Legislation Tracker, click here.
• For more information on active designated hate groups across Ohio, click here.
• If you are a young person struggling, contact the Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
• If you are an adult in need of immediate help, contact the National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860