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Tennessee decided to ban gender-affirming care after Vanderbilt University Medical Center opened a transgender care clinic in 2018. Several years later, conservatives demanded an investigation into the clinic.
Written by Emily Cochrane
The introduction of a new transgender clinic at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in 2018 did not receive much publicity. The announcement only consisted of a brief news release with information about the clinic’s location, operating hours, and the names of two senior staff members.
Four years later, there was increased attention on the clinic after conservative political commentator Matt Walsh from The Daily Wire in Nashville shared a series of posts and videos about it. In these posts, it was revealed that a staff member at the clinic had referred to gender-affirming medication and surgery as profitable and used harsh language to describe the center’s treatments.
The medical center, which is not affiliated with Vanderbilt University, responded by stating that their clinic is dedicated to serving a population at high risk for mental and physical health problems, who have historically been neglected by the U.S. healthcare system.
The hospital stated that they do not treat children under 18 without parental consent and they will not require any employee to provide care that goes against their personal or religious beliefs.
The clinic came under scrutiny from conservatives, and Republican officials participated in a rally organized by Mr. Walsh in Nashville in October 2022 to oppose gender-affirming care for children. In January 2023, Tennessee lawmakers introduced Senate Bill 1, which aimed to ban gender-affirming care. Despite opposition from transgender individuals and most Democrats, the bill was passed by legislators.
Emily Cochrane is a journalist who reports on news in the southern United States for The Times. She is located in Nashville.
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