What This Bill Does
This bill creates a federal lawsuit right (a legal claim that private citizens can bring) against pediatric gender clinics and related organizations. People who received gender-transition procedures as minors and claim they suffered bodily injury or mental health harm can sue these organizations for money damages.
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Who It Affects
- Minors (people under 18) who received gender-transition procedures
- Pediatric gender clinics (medical facilities specializing in gender dysphoria treatment for minors)
- Medical practitioners who work at these clinics
- Hospitals that host, operate, partner with, provide funding to, or affiliate with pediatric gender clinics
- Institutions of higher education with the same relationships to pediatric gender clinics
- Federal agencies distributing funds
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Key Provisions
- Individuals who received gender-transition procedures as minors can file civil lawsuits against pediatric gender clinics, medical practitioners, hospitals, and affiliated institutions of higher education if they claim bodily injury or mental health harm resulted from the procedure. They can seek money damages, punitive damages (extra money meant to punish), and attorney's fees. (Sec. 2(b) and (c))
- People have up to 30 years after turning 18 to file their lawsuit. (Sec. 2(c))
- A pediatric gender clinic or medical practitioner can defend themselves by proving they did not know and had no reason to know the person was a minor. (Sec. 2(d))
- No federal money can go to pediatric gender clinics, institutions of higher education or hospitals affiliated with them, or to pay for gender-transition procedures performed on minors. (Sec. 3)
- The law applies to procedures performed before, on, or after the bill becomes law. (Sec. 4)
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What Changes
Federal law creates a new way for people to sue for harm they claim resulted from gender-transition procedures performed when they were minors. Federal funding becomes prohibited for pediatric gender clinics and affiliated organizations, and for gender-transition procedures on minors.
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Important Definitions
- **Gender-transition procedure**: Prescription or administration of puberty-blocking drugs, testosterone (for females) or estrogen (for males), or surgery intended to change someone's body to match their internal sense of gender identity when that differs from their biological sex at birth. (Sec. 2(a)(1))
- **Pediatric gender clinic**: A medical facility specializing in diagnosing or treating gender dysphoria (distress from mismatch between gender identity and sex assigned at birth) in minors, including medical interventions and referrals for gender-transition procedures. (Sec. 2(a)(6))
- **Minor**: A person under 18 years old. (Sec. 2(a)(5))
- **Medical practitioner**: A person licensed, certified, or authorized by state law to provide health care. (Sec. 2(a)(4))
- **Harm to mental health**: Physical, psychological, emotional, or physiological harm. (Sec. 2(b))
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Effective Date
The bill takes effect on the date it becomes law. (Sec. 4)
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 457
To establish a Federal tort against pediatric gender clinics and other entities
pushing gender-transition procedures that cause bodily injury to children
or harm the mental health of children.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 15, 2023
Mr. HAWLEY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To establish a Federal tort against pediatric gender clinics
and other entities pushing gender-transition procedures
that cause bodily injury to children or harm the mental
health of children.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Our Kids
4
from Child Abuse Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. FEDERAL TORT FOR HARM TO CHILDREN CAUSED
6
BY GENDER-TRANSITION PROCEDURES.
7
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
8
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•S 457 IS
(1) GENDER TRANSITION PROCEDURE.—
1
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in
2
subparagraph (B), the term ‘‘gender-transition
3
procedure’’ means—
4
(i) the prescription or administration
5
of gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists
6
or any other puberty-blocking drugs for
7
the purpose of changing the body of an in-
8
dividual so that it conforms to the subjec-
9
tive sense of identity of the individual, in
10
the case such identity is at odds with the
11
individual’s biological sex of male or fe-
12
male;
13
(ii) the prescription or administration
14
of testosterone (when prescribed to a fe-
15
male) or estrogen (when prescribed to a
16
male) for the purpose of changing the body
17
of an individual so that it conforms to the
18
subjective sense of identity of the indi-
19
vidual, in the case such identity is at odds
20
with the individual’s biological sex of male
21
or female; or
22
(iii) a surgery to change the body of
23
an individual so that it conforms to the
24
subjective sense of identity of the indi-
25
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•S 457 IS
vidual, in the case such identity is at odds
1
with the individual’s biological sex of male
2
or female.
3
(B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘‘gender-tran-
4
sition procedure’’ does not include—
5
(i) an intervention described in sub-
6
paragraph (A) that is performed on—
7
(I) an individual with biological
8
sex characteristics that are inherently
9
ambiguous, such as those born with
10
46 XX chromosomes with virilization,
11
46
XY
chromosomes
with
12
undervirilization, or having both ovar-
13
ian and testicular tissue; or
14
(II) an individual with respect to
15
whom a physician has determined
16
through genetic or biochemical testing
17
that the individual does not have nor-
18
mal sex chromosome structure, sex
19
steroid hormone production, or sex
20
steroid hormone action, for a biologi-
21
cal male or biological female;
22
(ii) the treatment of any infection, in-
23
jury, disease, or disorder that has been
24
caused or exacerbated by the performance
25
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•S 457 IS
of an intervention described in subpara-
1
graph (A) without regard to whether the
2
intervention was performed in accordance
3
with State or Federal law or whether the
4
intervention is covered by the private right
5
of action under subsection (c); or
6
(iii) any procedure undertaken be-
7
cause the individual suffers from a physical
8
disorder, physical injury, or physical illness
9
that would, as certified by a physician,
10
place the individual in imminent danger of
11
death or impairment of major bodily func-
12
tion unless the procedure is performed.
13
(2) HOSPITAL.—The term ‘‘hospital’’ has the
14
meaning given such term in section 1861(e) of the
15
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(e)).
16
(3) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The
17
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the
18
meaning given such term in section 101 of the High-
19
er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).
20
(4) MEDICAL PRACTITIONER.—The term ‘‘med-
21
ical practitioner’’ means a person who is licensed,
22
certified, or otherwise authorized by the laws of a
23
State to administer health care in the ordinary
24
course of the practice of the person’s profession.
25
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•S 457 IS
(5) MINOR.—The term ‘‘minor’’ means an indi-
1
vidual who has not yet reached 18 years of age.
2
(6) PEDIATRIC
GENDER
CLINIC.—The term
3
‘‘pediatric gender clinic’’ means a medical facility
4
that specializes in the diagnosis or treatment of gen-
5
der discordance and gender dysphoria in minors, in-
6
cluding medical interventions such as therapeutic di-
7
agnosis of gender dysphoria and performance of (or
8
referral for) gender-transition procedures on minors.
9
(b) LIABILITY.—The following individuals and enti-
10
ties shall be liable in accordance with this section to any
11
individual who suffers bodily injury or harm to mental
12
health (including any physical, psychological, emotional, or
13
physiological harm) that is attributable, in whole or in
14
part, to a gender-transition procedure performed on the
15
individual when the individual was a minor:
16
(1) A pediatric gender clinic where the gender-
17
transition procedure was provided.
18
(2) Any medical practitioner who administered
19
health care, at the time of the particular procedure,
20
at the pediatric gender clinic where the gender-tran-
21
sition procedure was provided.
22
(3) An institution of higher education that
23
hosts, operates, partners with, provides funding to,
24
or is otherwise affiliated with the pediatric gender
25
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•S 457 IS
clinic where the gender-transition procedure was
1
provided.
2
(4) A hospital that hosts, operates, partners
3
with, provides funding to, or is otherwise affiliated
4
with the pediatric gender clinic where the gender-
5
transition procedure was provided.
6
(5) Any medical practitioner who performed the
7
gender-transition procedure on the individual.
8
(c) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.—An individual who
9
suffers bodily injury or harm to mental health that is at-
10
tributable, in whole or in part, to a gender-transition pro-
11
cedure provided to the individual when the individual was
12
a minor may, not later than 30 years after the date on
13
which the individual turns 18 years of age, bring a civil
14
action against an individual or entity described in sub-
15
section (b), in an appropriate district court of the United
16
States or a State court of competent jurisdiction for—
17
(1) compensatory damages;
18
(2) punitive damages; and
19
(3) attorney’s fees and costs.
20
(d) AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE.—It shall be an affirma-
21
tive defense to an action brought by or on behalf of an
22
individual upon whom a gender-transition procedure was
23
performed under subsection (c) that the pediatric gender
24
clinic or medical practitioner who performed the gender-
25
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•S 457 IS
transition procedure on the individual, at all relevant
1
times, did not know and had no reason to know that the
2
individual in question was a minor.
3
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON FUNDING.
4
No Federal funds may be made available—
5
(1) to a pediatric gender clinic;
6
(2) to an institution of higher education or hos-
7
pital that hosts, operates, partners with, provides
8
funding to, or is otherwise affiliated with, a pediatric
9
gender clinic; or
10
(3) for any gender-transition procedure per-
11
formed on a minor.
12
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE AND RETROACTIVE APPLICATION.
13
This Act shall—
14
(1) take effect on the date of enactment of this
15
Act; and
16
(2) apply to any gender-transition procedure
17
that took place before, on, or after the effective date
18
under paragraph (1).
19
SEC. 5. SEVERABILITY.
20
If any provision of this Act, or the application of such
21
provision to any person or circumstance, is held to be un-
22
constitutional, the remainder of this Act, and the applica-
23
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•S 457 IS
tion of the remaining provisions of this Act, to any person
1
or circumstance, shall not be affected.
2
Æ
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