Most in new poll say restricting access to gender-affirming care should not be focus for politicians

Source: The Hill

Most in new poll say restricting access to gender-affirming care should not be focus for politicians

BY BROOKE MIGDON - 09/18/23 5:20 PM ET

A majority of Americans said they believe politicians should not have a say in whether transgender people are able to access gender-affirming health care, even as a record number of states press legislation to severely restrict care for transgender youths and adults, according to a poll published Monday by The 19th News.

In a survey of more than 20,000 American adults, 72 percent said politicians do not know enough about gender-affirming health care to make accurate policies. Just 17 percent of Americans, and 29 percent of Republicans, said restricting access to gender-affirming care should be a focus of politicians on either side of the aisle.

Nearly half of survey respondents — 44 percent — said politicians should not focus on transgender issues at all.

“Each side needs to leave it alone,” Sal Cossari, a Republican living in New Jersey with his long-term girlfriend and his young son, told The 19th News.

Most Republicans agree: When asked if they believe elected leaders should focus on restricting access to gender-affirming care, protecting transgender people or dropping the issue entirely, a plurality of Republicans surveyed — 58 percent — said they do not want politicians to wade into transgender issues.

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Read more: https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/4210692-most-in-new-poll-say-restricting-access-to-gender-affirming-care-should-not-be-focus-for-politicians/