CHICAGO — Following the U.S. Supreme  Court ruling on U.S. v. Skrmetti which upheld a Tennessee law banning certain medical treatments, such as puberty blockers and hormones for people under age 18 experiencing gender dysphoria, State Senator Graciela Guzmán (D-Chicago) released the following statement:

“I am devastated by the Supreme Court’s recent decision to uphold this regressive law. It is heartbreaking to imagine the thousands of transgender youth growing up across our country without the ability to access lifesaving care because their mental and physical health are dismissed. These are real people’s livelihoods that are disregarded, and I am furious this ruling has reinforced outdated, transphobic ideologies.

“I am proud that here in Illinois, we have laws protecting our transgender and LGBTQIA+ community. We have fought to include LGBTIQA+ folks in the Illinois Human Rights Act, protecting them against discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodations and more based on their perceived or real sexual orientation or gender identity. We actively fight transphobic and homophobic ideologies interpersonally and in our education system, passing legislation in 2019 to include LBGTQIA+ history in public school curriculum. All of these measures and more help young people in Illinois discover who they are and embrace their identity without fear of retaliation, shame or hate.

“Since taking office, I have introduced several measures to make gender-affirming care more accessible, such as legislation requiring insurance plans to cover laser hair removal if it is deemed medically necessary, including for gender-affirming care. I also proposed an initiative that would ban prior authorization for gender-affirming care, hormonal therapy and HIV treatment and prevention to ensure people receiving this care can continue these treatments. Health care is a human right, and this includes gender-affirming care for transgender, genderfluid and nonbinary people of all ages.

“To my transgender siblings, please know my heart aches with you at this news. I see you, I am with you and I acknowledge that I am not free until all of us are free. I will continue to fight for the expansion of protections for trans youth and adults here in Illinois, and hope our efforts inspire others to keep fighting against hate until we are all afforded the protections we deserve.”