COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — There soon could be two sets of laws impacting access to gender-affirming care in Ohio.

Barring legal challenges, House Bill 68 to ban gender-affirming care for minors will be enacted on April 24. Another set of similar measures proposed by Gov. Mike DeWine after he vetoed HB 68 will also soon be finalized.

“It was never our intention to restrict care,” DeWine said. “What we were trying to do is make sure the quality of care was good. That, to me, was the most important thing.”

“We know these rules are still going to impact access to equitable healthcare,” said Rhea Debussy, director of external affairs for Equitas Health. “The governor’s proposed administrative rules still directly run counter to evidence based standards of care.”

DeWine’s rules include a list of standards for minors to receive prescriptions, like hormones, including a requirement that they undergo at least six months of mental health counseling. The rules also require aggregate data to be reported by providers within thirty days of treatments like gender-reassignment surgeries, gender-transition services or a diagnosis of a gender-related condition, which is Debussy said is a point of concern.

“The question is why does the state want this information? What’s the purpose?” Debussy said. “Folks are concerned that the data may be misconstrued in specific ways and be used as a future attempt to attack gender-affirming care.”

Still, after opening the rules to public comment, DeWine said they the rules have been tweaked and are ready for implementation.

“Could there be some small changes made? Yes, there could be. But it’s not going to be anything that anybody is going to get too excited about,” he said. “After listening to what people had to say and taking look at this, we made the changes we thought were necessary.”

“Politicians should not be making patients healthcare decisions for them,” Debussy said.

Regardless of DeWine’s rules, HB 68 will be in effect in about two months. DeWine said part of the rule-making process was in anticipation of a lawsuit. 

“We don’t know what courts are going to do,” DeWine said. “And so, I think having these rules in place, if in fact there is a stay issued by the courts, having those rules in place just make sense.”

“When it comes down to HB 68, we are every confident it will be struck down,” Debussy said. “These proposed administrative rules, along with HB 68 are clear examples of government overreach in pursuit of a radical anti-trans agenda.”

DeWine said right now he “cannot put a date” on when the rules will be officially finalized and enacted.