This blog originally appeared at AP News.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Debate surrounding Florida’s new restrictions on gender-affirming care focused largely on transgender children. But a new law that Republican presidential candidate and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed last month also made it difficult – even impossible – for many transgender adults to get treatment.
Eli cuddles his dog on the couch at his home in Casselberry, Fla., May 29, 2023. Eli and his fiancé Lucas, both transgender men, plan to move to Minnesota with their dog and two cats later this year. The Associated Press is not using Eli’s and Lucas’ last names because they fear reprisal.
The discussions in the Legislature surrounding the ban on gender-affirming care for minors in Florida have had a significant impact on transgender individuals like Eli and Lucas, who are a couple. As trans men, they have been closely following the debates, with Democrats warning about the increased risk of suicide among trans children if the ban is implemented, and Republicans sharing misguided stories of mutilated kids. However, what caught Eli and Lucas off guard was the realization that the bill’s language would also disrupt their own lives.
Feeling blindsided by the lack of communication and discussions in their circles, Eli, aged 29, expressed the challenges they now face. The couple, like many other transgender adults in Florida, is confronted with difficult choices. They must decide whether to uproot their lives and seek access to gender-confirming care elsewhere, as the restrictive regulations in Florida make it a test case for limitations on care for adults. This situation has left individuals like Eli and Lucas, as well as clinics providing gender-affirming services, grappling with uncertainty and trying to navigate a challenging landscape.
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