1. United States
2. Vt.
3. Letter

I urge you to oppose HB3492, the so-called Protect Children's Innocence Act, which would criminalize gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors and impose up to ten years imprisonment on healthcare providers who offer this evidence-based treatment. This legislation represents a dangerous federal overreach that would deny medically necessary care to vulnerable young people and contradict the established standards of every major medical organization in the country. The American Academy of Pediatrics, the Endocrine Society, and the American Medical Association all recognize gender-affirming care as appropriate treatment for gender dysphoria in certain circumstances. HB3492 would eliminate medical judgment entirely, imposing strict criminal liability on physicians regardless of individual medical circumstances or professional consensus. This creates a chilling effect where doctors may refuse to provide any care that could be construed as prohibited, even when exceptions might apply. The bill's impact extends beyond healthcare providers. Parents and guardians who facilitate access to this care would face criminal prosecution, fundamentally undermining parental authority over medical decisions for their own children. This federal prohibition would override state laws in jurisdictions that currently permit regulated gender-affirming care, trampling on traditional state authority over medical practice. Most troubling is the complete absence of any mechanism to address the serious mental health consequences of denying treatment. Medical literature documents elevated suicide risk among youth with untreated gender dysphoria. By criminalizing care without regard for these documented harms, HB3492 prioritizes ideology over the wellbeing of real children facing genuine medical needs. The legislation faces substantial constitutional challenges under equal protection and due process principles. It discriminates against transgender minors by denying them access to care available to other young people with comparable medical conditions, and it infringes on fundamental rights to medical care and bodily autonomy without sufficient justification. I ask you to stand with transgender youth, their families, and the medical professionals who care for them by opposing HB3492.