COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Gov. Mike DeWine has vetoed an Ohio bill that would ban transgender minors from receiving certain healthcare and prohibit transgender girls from participating in female athletics.

DeWine announced on Friday he has rejected House Bill 68 — the “Save Adolescents from Experimentation” and the “Save Women’s Sports” acts — after the Statehouse passed the legislation on Dec. 13. However, the bill could still go into effect given a three-fifths vote in Ohio’s House of Representatives and Senate would override the governor’s veto. 

“Were I to sign House Bill 68, or were House Bill 68 to become law, Ohio would be saying that the state, that the government knows better what is medically best for a child than the two people who love that child the most, their parents,” said DeWine.

H.B. 68 would bar medical professionals from providing treatment known as gender-affirming care, like puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy, to trans children in the state. DeWine said he made his decision after visiting five children’s hospitals and speaking with families whose children undergo that treatment.

“They told me their child is alive only because they received care,” said DeWine. “These are gut-wrenching decisions that should be made by parents and should be informed by teams of doctors who are advising them. These are parents who have watched their children suffer for years.”

Still, the governor noted on Friday he will proceed with drafting administrative rules to ban gender-affirming surgery on minors. DeWine said he is also instructing his administration to collect data on trans healthcare and to combat clinics that don’t provide adequate mental health counseling.

Nick Lashutka, Ohio Children’s Hospital Association president, testified the state’s children’s hospitals “do not perform any surgeries on minors for the condition of gender dysphoria.” Still, the bill bans physicians from performing reconstructive surgery on a minor. H.B. 68 also includes a grandfather clause that permits a physician “under specified circumstances” to continue prescribing puberty-blocking drugs to a minor after the bill’s effective date.

Those in favor of H.B. 68 have argued Ohioans under age 18 are incapable of providing the informed consent necessary to make the decisions to receive this care, including Speaker of the Ohio House Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) who said he is disappointed the governor rejected the legislation.

“The bill sponsors, and The House, have dedicated nearly three years to get the bill right — to empower parents and protect children,” said Stephens in a statement. “It was passed by veto-proof majorities in each chamber. We will certainly discuss as a caucus and take the appropriate next steps.”

Rep. Adam Bird (R-New Richmond) said he believes DeWine’s decision was not “adequately thought through,” and that the governor is not “thinking about the protection of our young people.”

“He’s the executive branch, but that doesn’t mean you’re the king or the emperor,” said Bird. “Despite the governor’s poor decision today, I believe that we will override him in the month of January.”

Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) called the measure “discriminatory” and said the veto is “a much needed sign of support for Ohio’s LGBTQ+ children and the community overall.”

“I appreciate that Governor DeWine took his time to listen to the individuals most impacted by this discriminatory legislation,” said Russo. “It sends a much needed message of support to Ohio’s LGBTQ+ youth that they and their families are seen and heard and deserve the fundamental freedom like everyone else to feel safe in their own communities.”

Lawmakers amended H.B. 68 to include House Bill 6 to prohibit trans girls from taking part in female athletics and override the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s trans student-athlete policy. H.B. 68 allows an athlete to sue for relief or damages if they are “deprived” of an athletic opportunity by a trans girl.

“[The bill] says that we believe that it’s a very important part of development and it needs to be something that girls shouldn’t be participating in competitive sports with boys,” said Stephens.

Rep. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) applauded the governor’s veto and said Ohio’s legislature “is willing to outright attack the most vulnerable members of our society, including trans kids and their families.”

“I agree with the governor when he said that the government should not be in these healthcare decisions. I trust doctors and I trust parents and I trust kids too,” said Weinstein. “I am hopeful that one or two on the other side will see and head the governors message and change their minds.”

A similar measure in Idaho was rejected on Thursday by a federal judge who ruled that the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection and due process give parents the right to get gender-affirming care for their children.

“If we could get enough votes to override Governor DeWine on flavored tobacco products, we should be able to get enough votes to protect children,” said Rep. Josh Williams (R-Sylvania). “Sixty-two Republicans voted in support of H.B. 68 with 10 members absent that day. So, I believe we are going to have the number of votes to override this veto.”

How many minors have received gender-affirming care in Ohio?

Ohio’s children’s hospitals have served about 3,300 individuals throughout the past 10 years whose first appointment at a gender clinic took place when they were under the age of 18, Lashutka said. The average age at their first appointment was 16 years old. Of those 3,300 individuals, only 7% were prescribed a puberty blocker and only 35% were prescribed hormones.

“While the majority of patients are never prescribed medication as minors, those who do take medication consider it lifesaving and crucial,” said Lashutka. “It is a dangerous precedent for government to dictate when medication is appropriate in pediatrics.”

Shefali Mahesh from the Department of Pediatrics at Akron Children’s Hospital said 0.0015% of the more than 320,000 patients each year are under the care of the institution’s multi-disciplinary team in its gender-affirming care clinic.

Sean Miller, a 15-year-old trans Ohioan, testified at the Statehouse it is “degrading to have to come to the Statehouse and beg my elected officials to treat transgender people like me with basic respect and ask for basic Constitutional rights.”

“Laws like this are pushing proud Ohioans like me out of our homes,” said Miller. “I want to live in Ohio. But, if I do not have the right to choose to live in a body that fits who I am on the inside, I cannot.”

Carey Callahan, a Bainbridge resident, also testified and said they are a detransitioned woman who had to move out of Ohio to access gender-affirming care. Callahan said they have experienced the circumstances trans people often endure, like being belittled and humiliated in medical offices.

“You aren’t protecting children from becoming a ‘detransitioner’ like me,” said Callahan. “You are exiling good people from our state, traumatizing kids and families, and working hard to make Ohio a less safe place to raise kids.”

How many trans athletes participate in Ohio sports?

Nineteen trans girls — 10 in middle school and nine in high school — have participated in girls’ sports since the policy was implemented eight years ago, including the six trans high school students taking part during the 2022-23 school year.

The OHSAA, which says about 400,000 athletes in grades 7-12 participate in its sanctioned sports each school year, asserted its policy is effective in protecting the integrity of girls’ sports while also providing participation opportunities for trans students.

The five-page policy states trans athletes “should have equal opportunity to participate in sports” while preserving “the integrity of women’s sports.” The document provides a step-by-step process for a trans student to request OHSAA participation. Learn about the OHSAA’s approval process for trans athletes here.

Connor McLaren, a trans Ohio high school student, testified at the Statehouse she goes through the OHSAA’s approval policy each year to participate in school athletics. McLaren said lawmakers are depriving kids like her the opportunity to feel a sense of belonging when they need it most.

“Playing sports and learning to function with a team, making those connections, and learning how it feels to be part of a group that so genuinely supports you changed my life, and I can’t imagine what I would do without it,” said McLaren.

DeWine had previously spoke in support of the OHSAA and had said he believed legislators do not need to address the matter.

“This issue is best addressed outside of government, through individual sports leagues and athletic associations, including the Ohio High School Athletic Association, who can tailor policies to meet the needs of their member athletes and member institutions,” DeWine said.

Parker, a trans central Ohio high school student whose full name wasn’t given when they testified, said they have been playing field hockey their entire life and spoke in support of the OHSAA’s current policy. Parker accused lawmakers of only “following on the bandwagon” of the previous states banning trans athletes.

“It is evident that you are not saving women’s sports,” said Parker. “We already have policies in place by the OHSAA that have worked for years. Don’t take the opportunity for trans youth like me to play as their full authentic self.”