Despite Opposition Across South Carolina, Senate Passes Ban on Medically Necessary Healthcare for Trans Youth and Restricts Care for Some Adults

COLUMBIA, SC – Today the South Carolina Senate voted to pass H.4624, a broad intrusion into medically necessary healthcare for transgender South Carolinians. The bill would:

• Ban medically necessary healthcare for transgender youth under the age of 18 in South Carolina, including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgery. 

• Prohibit public funds and Medicaid from being used to cover the cost of transition-related healthcare for transgender people of any age – which could result in providers of gender-affirming care who receive public funds to restrict care, and would impact transgender people insured through the state employee healthcare plan. 

• Encourage school professionals to “out” students to their parents if they ask to go by a different name or pronouns, potentially before they are ready to share.

The bill now heads to the House of Representatives, which passed the bill in January, for concurrence, since multiple amendments were passed today. Advocates across the state are making a final appeal to House members urging him to reject this attack on medically necessary care.

The vote on H.4624 came even after hundreds of South Carolinians have taken action on the bill over the past four months dozens of South Carolinians testified against the bill in recent months, both to the House and Senate. Families of trans youth, countless medical professionals, and educators all agreed: this bill is a cruel and dangerous assault on trans youth and adults in South Carolina, and ignores the guidance of every major medical organization. Recent polling tracked that 71% of South Carolinians oppose bills like H.4624. 

There is strong legal precedent in cases across the country indicating that many of the provisions of H.4624 are patently unconstitutional. Many courts have ruled against bans on gender-affirming care for minors – and just this week, on Monday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled that exclusions of transition-related care in West Virginia’s Medicaid system and North Carolina’s state employee healthcare plan are unconstitutional. South Carolina’s laws are controlled by the 4th Circuit’s legal precedent. 

Chase Glenn (he/him pronouns), a leader in the SC United for Justice & Equality coalition and the Executive Director of Alliance for Full Acceptance, said today:

“Transgender South Carolinians are loved, accepted, and supported in every corner of the Palmetto State. The Senate’s decision to pass the healthcare ban today is cruel, unnecessary, and will do nothing to make South Carolina better for all of us. 71% of our friends, neighbors, and loved ones resoundingly believe that the government should not interfere in gender-affirming care decisions for minors if parents are involved in the care. Lawmakers have gone against the will of the people in moving forward with this bill, and those who voted to rip away this life-saving medical care will be held accountable at the ballot box.”

Ivy Hill (they/them pronouns), a leader in the SC United for Justice & Equality coalition, was at the SC Statehouse for today’s vote. They said in response to the vote:

“All session long, South Carolinians have come together with a mosaic of voices and stories urging our lawmakers to say NO to H.4624. This bill inserts the government into the private medical decisions of transgender people – including youth AND adults – and asserts that South Carolina lawmakers know what’s best for us. But make no mistake: It’s not over until it’s over, and we will be organizing tirelessly in the hours ahead to ensure that we’ve left everything on the field and pushed back against this legislative attack with everything we have.”

Advocates from the SC United for Justice & Equality coalition are available to speak with the media about the legislation and its damaging impact transgender South Carolinians.