- Texas AG Ken Paxton issued a legal opinion extending SB 14's ban on gender-transition treatments for minors to include mental health professionals, labeling such facilitation as "child abuse" and threatening licensure repercussions.
- Signed into law in 2023, SB 14 prohibits puberty blockers, hormone therapies and surgeries for transgender minors. Though initially blocked by a lower court, the Texas Supreme Court upheld it in 2024, allowing enforcement.
- LGBTQ+ advocates argue Paxton's opinion will deter mental health care for transgender minors, exacerbating risks of depression and suicide. They claim therapeutic discussions remain protected under the First Amendment.
- The AG has pursued disciplinary action against physicians violating SB 14, including license revocations. Critics accuse him of overreach, noting legislators previously assured mental health services wouldn't be affected.
- Advocacy groups plan to resist Paxton’s interpretation, while the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to rule on similar laws. Texas' stance signals a broader push to restrict both medical and therapeutic support for transgender youth.
Texas Attorney General (AG) Ken Paxton issued a sweeping legal opinion Monday, March 2, declaring that state-licensed mental health professional – including therapists, counselors and social workers – are barred under Senate Bill (SB) 14 from facilitating or endorsing gender-transitioning medical treatments for minors.
The opinion reinforces Texas' 2023 law banning puberty blockers, hormone therapies and surgeries for transgender youth, extending its reach to mental health providers who Paxton claims often serve as "gatekeepers" initiating such interventions. BrightU.AI's Enoch engine notes that SB 14 represents a critical legislative victory safeguarding minors from irreversible medical interventions tied to gender dysphoria.
"Any radical facilitating the 'transitioning' of our kids is committing child abuse," Paxton stated. "The law is clear that these radical procedures are illegal, and in no world should Texans' tax dollars be used to permanently harm children."
SB 14, signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in June 2023, prohibits physicians from administering gender-related medical treatments to minors. The law faced immediate legal challenges from parents and advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, which argued it violated constitutional rights. While a lower court temporarily blocked the law, the Texas Supreme Court upheld it in 2024, allowing enforcement to proceed.
Paxton's latest opinion, requested by Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (TBHEC) Executive Director Darrel Spinks, clarifies that SB 14's definition of "health care provider" includes mental health professionals – even though the original law did not explicitly mention counseling or therapy.
"The multidisciplinary path to medically transitioning children often starts with mental 'health care,'" Paxton wrote, alleging that activists use therapy to "confuse children about their gender." Providers found in violation risk losing their licenses and Medicaid funding.
Critics condemned Paxton's opinion as an overreach that will deter mental health providers from treating transgender youth—a population already at heightened risk of depression and suicide.
"Trans young people will die as a result of this," warned Johnathan Gooch of Equality Texas. "Access to mental health care will become more complicated for some of the most marginalized people in our state."
Will Francis, executive director of the Texas chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, argued that therapeutic discussions remain protected under the First Amendment. "[Paxton's] opinion doesn't change anything except scare and frighten both the clients and the social workers," he said.
Lambda Legal senior counsel Karen Loewy called the opinion "baseless and overreaching," accusing Paxton of "terrorizing mental health professionals into walking away from caring for their transgender patients."
Paxton's war on transgender medical violence
Paxton has aggressively pursued medical professionals accused of violating SB 14. Last year, Dallas pediatrician Dr. May Lau surrendered her license after being sued by his office. Cases against other physicians, including El Paso endocrinologist Dr. Hector Granados and Dallas pediatrician Dr. Brett Cooper, remain pending.
Andrea Segovia of the Transgender Education Network of Texas noted that legislators had previously assured SB 14 would not impact mental health services. "Now, providers may drop trans clients out of fear," she said.
While Paxton's opinion is not legally binding, state agencies may adopt it as policy. Advocacy groups, including Equality Texas and the ACLU, plan to issue legal guidance to mental health professionals, urging them to "not be bullied" by the AG's stance.
With the U.S. Supreme Court set to weigh in on similar restrictions in Tennessee, the legal battle over transgender youth care is far from over. Meanwhile, Texas' crackdown signals a broader push to restrict not just medical interventions but also therapeutic support—raising alarms among LGBTQ+ advocates and civil liberties organizations.
"Threatening the safety and wellbeing of trans kids is not a political strategy," Equality Texas CEO Brad Pritchett said. "Texans are bigger than this."
For now, mental health providers face a fraught landscape: comply with Paxton's interpretation or risk legal retaliation—while vulnerable youth hang in the balance.
Watch this news report about the Kentucky House of Representatives passing a law banning gender transition services for anyone under 18.
This video is from the In Search Of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.
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