Michigan GOP Lawmakers Introduce Three-Bill Attack on Trans Healthcare
Latest anti-trans package joins existing House bill as part of broader Republican effort to restrict life-saving care — Equality Michigan urges community to sign petition

Michigan Republicans launched a coordinated legislative assault on transgender healthcare today with a three-bill package that would prohibit gender-affirming care for transgender youth, penalize medical providers and force insurers to cover "detransition" procedures.
The Michigan Senate and House bills, introduced on May 7 and May 8 and referred to the Committee on Government Operations, join House Bill 4190 and others introduced earlier this year as part of a broader Republican effort to restrict transgender rights in Michigan.
"This legislation is based on lies and ignores science to try and take away essential, life-saving care," Equality Michigan said in a statement released today. "Transgender healthcare for young people is safe, evidence-based and supported by every major medical association in the country. Denying this care would put young people at greater risk for depression, anxiety and suicide."
Gender-affirming care is recognized as medically necessary and potentially life-saving by major medical organizations throughout the world, including the American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, American Psychological Association, World Medical Association and World Professional Association for Transgender Health. Research consistently shows that access to appropriate healthcare significantly reduces depression, anxiety and suicide risk among transgender youth.
Importantly, contrary to claims by the bill's supporters, gender-affirming surgical procedures are not part of standard medical protocols for minors. The care provided to transgender youth typically consists of social support, counseling, puberty blockers (which are reversible) and in some cases, hormone therapy for older adolescents — all provided with parental consent and extensive medical oversight.
The new legislative package includes:
Senate Bill 289 and matching House Bill 4467, the "protecting minors from chemical and surgical mutilation act," introduced by Sen. Thomas Albert (R-SD-18) and Rep. Brad Paquette (R-HD-37), along with seven Republican co-sponsors, would prohibit healthcare professionals from providing any gender-affirming medical treatments to individuals under 18.
Senate Bill 290 and matching House Bill 4466, would amend the state's Public Health Code to revoke the licenses of healthcare providers who violate the proposed ban. The legislation specifically adds violation of SB 289 as grounds for disciplinary action, with penalties including "revocation, permanent revocation or denial" of medical licenses.
Senate Bill 291 and matching House Bill 4468, would amend the state's Insurance Code to mandate that health insurance companies provide coverage for "any procedure or treatment necessary to reverse the enrollee's gender transition procedure or treatment," regardless of whether the insurer covered the person at the time of their original transition-related care.
These Senate bills follow House Bill 4190, introduced in March by Rep. Jason Woolford (R-Howell), which would similarly ban gender-affirming care and hormone therapies for minor patients. During a news conference promoting the House bill, Woolford connected the legislation to Michigan's support for President Trump, claiming voters had rejected what he termed "radical transgender ideology."
"From the State House to the White House, we are saying that we will no longer allow our daughters and women to be taken advantage of by insecure men, haters of women, radical transgender ideology and those who choose to stand in silence," Woolford said in March.
The legislation uses inflammatory language rejected by medical experts, referring to standard medical treatments as "mutilation" and defining gender transition as altering an individual's anatomy "for the purpose of furthering or assisting the individual's identification as a member of the opposite biological sex."
As Equality Michigan Action Network Director of Advocacy and Civic Engagement Emme Zanotti told Michigan Advance earlier this year, "They're just playing politics with people's lives and they're trying to distract working people from issues that actually impact them. And they're doing so by going after a smaller subset of working families in the state of Michigan and taking away their access to health care, for their families, for their kids and that's all it is."
Zanotti also noted that policies are not being presented with "coherent, unbiased or accredited research" and described it as "a dangerous game at the executive and state level to impose policies like those included in the bill which put kids lives at risk" for "cheap political points."
SB 289 would prohibit healthcare professionals from providing puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and any gender-affirming care to anyone under 18, with limited exceptions only for minors with medically verifiable disorders of sex development or those facing "imminent danger of death" without surgery.
The bill would also allow people to sue healthcare providers for damages up to 20 years after receiving care, with courts required to award "reasonable costs and attorney fees" to successful plaintiffs.
This legislative push directly contradicts Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's February guidance asserting that Michigan law protects against healthcare discrimination regardless of federal funding status.
"Politicians have no business inserting themselves into the private medical decisions of Michigan families," Equality Michigan emphasized in today's statement. "Stand with us to protect the freedom of trans youth and their families to make personal, age-appropriate healthcare decisions with their doctor."
Equality Michigan is collecting signatures for a petition calling on Michigan lawmakers to protect access to gender-affirming care and reject any attempt to take it away.
"Your voice matters. Every signature sends the clear message that trans youth belong here, and we will protect their right to exist," Equality Michigan wrote. To sign the petition defending transgender healthcare access in Michigan, visit bit.ly/migacp.