California State Sen. Pulls Bill Banning Surgeries on Intersex Children

Wiener Intersex Surgery Bill

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By Ayumi Davis

AP Fellow

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California State Senator Scott Wiener is pulling a bill banning surgeries on intersex children until they are old enough to take part in the decision.

The bill had been stuck in the Committee on Business, Professions and Economic Development as there has been criticism from the California Medical Association and parents who believe they should be responsible for medical decisions for their children.

Wiener on Tuesday said that the legislation "does not appear to have a viable path forward."

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For three years, Wiener, a Democrat from San Francisco, has attempted to prohibit some types of surgeries on children born intersex, meaning they have genitalia, reproductive organs or chromosomes that don't generally fit male or female bodies. For example, a child could be born with ovaries and male genitals, or have genitals not formed completely, resulting in their gender being ambiguous.

Surgeries that perform genitalia modification procedures on individuals younger than 12 would have been prohibited under the bill, with an exception if the surgery was necessary to prevent immediate physical harm to a child, according to the California Globe.

In 2020, the bill reached the Senate committee but was voted down 4-2, the California Globe reported. Last year, the bill was halted in the committee again after Wiener denied several suggested amendments.

"The age of 12 is problematic, as a lot of people still see that as too young to make a decision on a surgery that will change their life forever," Anthony Kovic, a representative for health care workers and physicians in Midwest against bill similar nationwide, told the California Globe. "The issue of gender and identity is becoming a larger and larger topic in the U.S., but this is not the kind of bill to address that."

Wiener Intersex Surgery Bill

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"For three years, we've worked to advance legislation, and it's become apparent that we continue to lack the votes to pass a meaningful bill—one that actually protects intersex people—through committee," Wiener said.

The nations of Germany, Colombia and Malta restrict certain surgeries on intersex children. Two U.S. children's hospitals—one in Chicago and one in Boston—also limit these types of surgeries on children. But so far, no U.S. state has passed a law limiting the surgeries.

"Pausing medically unnecessary genital surgeries until a child is old enough to participate in the decision isn't a radical idea. Rather, it's about basic human dignity," Wiener said. "I'm not giving up, and I stand in solidarity with the intersex community in its fight for bodily autonomy, dignity and choice."

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