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Conferees agree redline changes to HB377 restricting gender‑altering care for minors; grandfathering and private right of action remain central
Summary
Committee conferees negotiated redline language to stop medical procedures that alter minor children’s gender presentation, grandfather patients who began treatment before the section’s effective date, and add a private right of action; conferees agreed to move the committee report forward with the revised paragraph language.
Committee conferees on HB 377, the bill that would prohibit certain medical interventions aimed at altering a minor’s gender, agreed to redline changes clarifying the scope of the prohibition and how it applies to patients already receiving treatment.
Senators and House conferees discussed two principal issues: the timeframe for grandfathering patients already on treatment and whether to include a private right of action to permit civil lawsuits for violations. The Senate had adopted language that would grandfather all patients who began treatment prior to January 1, 2026; the House expressed concern that such language could prompt a “rush to the gate” and asked that the effective date be tied to the bill’s effective date or otherwise clarified. The Senate conferees said in committee that initiating treatment is typically a months‑to‑a‑year process and that grandfathering to a fixed calendar date was not likely to cause a large sudden increase in new starts; conferees debated but did not change the effective date during the session.
The adopted redline clarified that continued treatment begun before the section’s effective date would not be a violation of the chapter and replaced an earlier drafting that could have been read to shield providers regardless of patient start date. The redline also mirrors language added on the Senate floor that creates a private right of action, allowing an aggrieved minor to seek damages and injunctive relief up to two years after reaching majority.
When the conference reported the redline, House conferees voted “aye” and the Senate conferees indicated agreement on the amendment; Senator Prentiss said she supported the amendment but would not vote for the underlying bill and would be replaced on the signing conferee roster. The conferees instructed drafting staff to prepare the agreed text and placed the committee report on the House consent calendar.
Committee members noted that the redline’s grandfathering and private‑right provisions were the central policy tradeoffs between protecting children from future treatments and preserving continuity of care for those already enrolled in supervised treatment programs.
