Republicans in the Kansas Legislature overrode Gov. Laura Kelly’s (D) veto of S.B. 63, a ban on gender-affirming care, on Tuesday.

S.B. 63 bans all forms of gender-affirming care – including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgery – for trans people under the age of 18. The bill contains an exception for cisgender youth who need the same treatments; it specifically says that the treatments are only banned when used “for a child’s perception of gender or sex that is inconsistent with such child’s sex,” where sex is defined by reproductive organs, chromosomes, and “naturally occurring sex hormones.”

Doctors who provide such care will lose their licenses, malpractice insurance is banned from covering damages that may result from such care, and the law also bans talk therapy for trans kids.

The state’s legislature passed S.B. 63 earlier this year, but Gov. Kelly vetoed it earlier this month, citing parental rights.

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“It is not the job of politicians to stand between a parent and a child who needs medical care of any kind,” Kelly said in a statement. “Infringing on parental rights is not appropriate, nor is it a Kansas value.”

But Republicans have supermajorities in both chambers of the Kansas Legislature, which they used to override the veto. The Kansas Senate voted 31-9 to override, and the Kansas House of Representatives voted 85-34 to override.

“Today, a supermajority of the Kansas Senate declared that Kansas is no longer a sanctuary state,” Senate President Ty Masterson (R) said. Kansas was not a trans sanctuary state.

All major medical associations in the U.S., including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Endocrine Society, support gender-affirming care as a safe and effective treatment for gender dysphoria in trans youth.

About 200 healthcare professionals signed an open letter to the Kansas legislature urging lawmakers to sustain the veto.

“It’s crucial to recognize that transgender youth are not making impulsive decisions, but rather engaging in a thoughtful process with the support of their families, mental health professionals, and medical providers,” the letter stated. “Banning essential health care for transgender Kansans under the age of 18 removes a crucial lifeline from these individuals and places them at risk of long-term psychological harm.”

When President Joe Biden first took office in 2020, no state banned gender-affirming care for trans youth. Now, after Republicans decided to pursue the issue, over half of the states ban gender-affirming care.

The Supreme Court is currently hearing a constitutional challenge to Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth, and a decision is expected this spring.

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