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House debate criminalizes gender‑affirming care for minors as sponsors push Protect Children's Innocence Act
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Summary
The House debated HR 34 92, the Protect Children's Innocence Act, with sponsors arguing the bill protects minors by criminalizing certain gender‑affirming procedures for those under 18 and opponents warning it would criminalize medical practice, intrude on parental decisions and jeopardize access to evidence‑based care.
The House considered HR 34 92, the Protect Children's Innocence Act. Proponents described the bill as protecting minors from irreversible procedures and chemical treatments they said were inappropriate for children; sponsors argued the measure mirrors federal female genital mutilation law's commerce clause to prohibit certain operations and impose criminal penalties on providers who perform them on minors.
Opponents—including major medical associations cited during the debate—said the bill would criminalize evidence‑based care, threaten patient privacy and place parents and clinicians at risk of prosecution. They noted that major professional bodies (American Academy of Pediatrics, American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association and others) oppose federal criminalization and favor state‑level regulation and clinical standards.
The House completed debate and proceeded to a motion to recommit (which failed on a recorded vote) and later recorded final passage votes as reflected on the floor. The recorded tally on the final question was announced in the transcript; the motion to recommit was not adopted and a subsequent final passage roll call was recorded.
