Missouri governor signs law limiting transgender treatment

Republican Gov. Mike Parson signed a bill Wednesday that protects children from puberty blockers, hormones, and transgender surgeries. Adults can still access the treatments, but Medicaid would not cover them. The law also prohibits transgender surgeries for prisoners. The law goes into effect in August and is set to expire in 2027 as part of a deal with Democratic state senators. The same day, Parson signed legislation prohibiting males from playing on female sports teams from kindergarten through college.

Are state officials creating abortion legislation? A Missouri judge heard testimony Wednesday over whether state Attorney General Andrew Bailey can block a petition to put a pro-abortion amendment on a statewide ballot. Missouri currently protects all unborn babies except to preserve the life or health of the mother. The state auditor must estimate how much legalizing abortion would cost the state and submit that to Bailey. The auditor estimated abortion could cost the state $51,000 annually, but Bailey said it could cost $51 billion. The petition cannot proceed without Bailey’s approval, and the auditor refuses to raise his estimate, so the ACLU asked the judge to order Bailey to certify the evaluation.

Dig deeper: Listen to Mary Reichard’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about regulating transgender treatment in Missouri.