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Georgia senators send gender care restrictions to governor

State Sen. Carden Summers, R-Cordele, speaks to activists opposing SB 140 before the bill gets final approval at the Senate in Atlanta on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. SB 140, sponsored by Summers, would prevent medical professionals from giving transgender children certain hormones or surgical treatment. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
Arvin Temkar/AP
/
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
State Sen. Carden Summers, R-Cordele, speaks to activists opposing SB 140 before the bill gets final approval at the Senate in Atlanta on Tuesday, March 21, 2023. SB 140, sponsored by Summers, would prevent medical professionals from giving transgender children certain hormones or surgical treatment. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

A ban on most gender-affirming surgeries and hormone replacement therapies in Georgia for transgender people under 18 is headed to Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk. Senators voted 31-21 on Tuesday to give the bill final passage. A spokesperson for Kemp isn't saying if the Republican governor will sign the bill into law. Opponents say the bill would be an unconstitutional infringement on parents’ rights. Doctors could still be able to prescribe medicines to block puberty under the Georgia bill. Republicans say restrictions on other treatments are needed to prevent children from making decisions they'll regret later. Opponents say the measure would hurt transgender children and require physicians to violate medical standards of care.