Colorado voters, some of whom are beginning to receive mail-in ballots, will decide whether the state will impose heavy restrictions on gender-affirming care for patients under 18 years old. Meanwhile, Colorado’s biggest medical groups are urging Coloradans to reject the proposal.
The Colorado Medical Society—the largest physicians’ group in the state—told Erin in the Morning:
The Colorado Medical Society opposes Colorado Proposition 135 – Protect Children from Irreversible Sex Change Surgery. After careful consideration, leadership determined Proposition 135 conflicts with current CMS policy opposing interference in the exercise of physician clinical decision-making.
CMS President Sean Pauzauskie said: “CMS members hold diverse political views but share a core principle: medical decisions belong in the exam room. CMS flatly opposes interference by government or other third parties that compromise physicians’ abilities to use their medical judgment as to the information or treatment that is in the best interest of their patients.”
He continued: “CMS remains committed to defending physician-led, patient-centered care and ensuring clinical decisions are guided by medical expertise, science and the unique needs of each patient.”
The Colorado Academy of Family Physicians similarly condemned it, telling its members: “Vote NO.”
“It is a broad, one-size-fits-all ban that goes far beyond what voters think they’re being asked to approve. It could block necessary care for kids who aren’t transgender, including teens facing testicular or cervical cancer, endometriosis, or intersex conditions.”
“Providers would be prohibited from providing care, prescribing, or referring patients for any form of care that could alter sex characteristics. CAFP prioritizes defending the relationship between patients, families, and physicians so you can provide careful, evidence-based care that best fits your patients’ needs.”
These condemnations put Colorado medical groups in good company. There is not a single major medical group in the country that endorses blanket government restrictions on gender-affirming care like the one outlined in Prop. 135. It targets any “surgery” that could be construed as “altering biological sex characteristics” for trans people under 18 years old, which could include rare instances of “bottom surgery” for those who are 17, as well as “top surgery” and potentially hormone implant procedures. It further bans the use of government funds as well as private insurance in the state from paying for such care.
However, Prop. 135 carves out explicit exceptions for irreversible and needless genital surgeries on intersex babies, as well as circumcision.
The ballot measure is one of several from across the country this election cycle targeting transgender children and health care. Arizona, Missouri, Nebraska, and Washington also put initiatives on the ballot this November that would curb the rights of transgender Americans. Others are anti-trans sports restrictions that also seek to ban trans kids from certain bathrooms or locker rooms.
Colorado is also voting on Prop. 134, which would legally segregate sports teams based on a child’s “biological reproductive system.” It would subject all girls, not just transgender ones, to the potential of invasive “sex tests.”
The outcome of this vote will reach far beyond any one state’s borders. This morning, movement leaders from major LGBTQ organizations, including the Transgender Law Center and the Human Rights Campaign, penned an op-ed for The Advocate laying out how the proposals can trigger a ripple effect.
These are “testing grounds for the 2028 Presidential election,” they said. “Political operatives will stress-test field operations, build voter databases, and perfect fear-based messaging. They will seek out which disinformation about LGBTQ people can flip a swing district. If the strategy succeeds in November, it will scale nationwide in 2028.”
In Colorado, Families Not Politics is leading the charge against the state’s anti-trans ballot initiative. They say they’re looking for volunteers to help phone bank and door knock for the cause.
Maybe I’m naïve, but I’m optimistic both anti-trans propositions will fail. That doesn’t mean we can rest easy, since there’s no rest for the wicked.
My best wishes to all of Colorado and my hopes you are wise.
"We must all hang together or we will all hang separately." - Ben Franklin (att.)