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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said parents who seek gender-affirming care for their children subject those children to abuse 鈥� so much so that other nations have sought to ban it.
During the fourth Republican presidential primary debate Dec. 6 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, DeSantis cited Sweden as an example.
"As a parent, you do not have the right to abuse your kids," DeSantis . "This is cutting off their genitals, this is mutilating these minors, these are irreversible procedures. And this is something that other countries in Europe like Sweden, once they started doing it, they saw it did incalculable damage. They've shut it down."
It is hard for transgender minors to get gender-affirming surgical care in Sweden. But much of that stems from a 1970s law that is unrelated to DeSantis鈥� point.
In 2022, health officials updated guidance for people younger than 18, advising chest surgery only in "exceptional cases." However, the new guidance is a recommendation 鈥� and is not comparable to the legal bans in some U.S. states.
What is gender-affirming care, and where does surgery fit in?
Gender-affirming care is an to health care that supports gender identity and it can go beyondinterventions. For the of transgender youth, this mainly involves support through social transition, puberty blockers and hormones as children become adolescents.
The gender-affirming surgery DeSantis cited is performed on minors, , a gynecological surgeon and president of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health. Surgeries on minors happen "only under the most severe conditions of gender dysphoria," she said. is the experience of distress that results when people鈥檚 sex assigned at birth does not match their gender identity.
"," or mastectomies, are more common than surgeries that alter genitalia.
In more broadly, gender-affirming care availability is more often dictated by health policy or guidelines, not legal prohibitions.
U.S. lawmakers have taken a different approach, with states in some cases banning certain procedures. DeSantis signed a in May that banned all gender-affirming medical care 鈥斺�� including puberty blockers, hormones and surgery.
Sweden has long restricted genital surgery
A 1975 Swedish , which ended a eugenics and forced sterilization program, says that people younger than 18 have genital surgeries. But the law doesn鈥檛 explicitly ban transgender care.
People seeking genital surgery must apply and by the Legal Council at the Swedish Board of Health and Welfare. People seeking this surgery need "special circumstances" to get their applications approved, according to the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights, also known as RFSL.
Sweden鈥檚 new guidance on 鈥榯op鈥� surgery and puberty blockers
in 2022, Swedish health officials cautioned that "the risks of puberty blockers and gender-affirming treatment are likely to outweigh the expected benefits." The guidelines recommended limiting use of puberty blockers, hormones and mastectomies to "exceptional cases."
"The guidelines are recommendations, and it's up to the physicians to interpret them and make a judgement in each specific case," said J锚ran Rostam, an expert in trangender issues at RFSL.
The guidelines don鈥檛 "ban" top surgeries, but do signal shrinking access to the procedure.
Our ruling
Speaking about gender-affirming surgical care for minors, DeSantis said Sweden "shut it down."
A 1970s law on sterilization requires people in Sweden to be 18 or older to qualify for genital surgeries. The law does not explicitly ban transgender care. Citing potential risks, Swedish health officials in 2022 advised that mastectomies for minors be reserved for "exceptional cases." But it is not a legal prohibition.
The statement is partially accurate but leaves out important information. We rate it Half True.
Editor鈥檚 Note: Google Translate was used throughout the research of this story to translate websites and documents into English. We corroborated our understanding of translated documents with expert sources.
Our Sources
- Email interview with J锚ran Rostam, expert on transgender issues at the The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights or RFSL, Aug. 31, 2023
- Email interview with Deekshitha Ganesan, Policy Officer at TGEU (Transgender Europe), Aug. 31, 2023
- Interview with Marci Bowers, Gynecological surgeon and President of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, Oct. 12, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," Sept. 6, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," Jan. 17, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," Aug. 10, 2022
- PolitiFact, "," Nov. 15, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," June 14, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," July 13, 2023
- Reuters, "," May 18, 2023
- U.S. News and World Report, "," Sept. 27, 2023
- Sveriges Riksdag, "" (translated from Swedish), June 12, 1975
- Indiana International & Comparative Law Review, "" 1998
- The Washington Post, "," Aug. 29, 1997
- The Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, "," 2022
- The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights, "," July 4, 2023
- The Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Rights, "," Jan. 27, 2022
- Sveriges Riksdag, "" (translated from Swedish), 1972
- The Atlantic, "," April 28, 2023
- PolitiFact, "," Aug. 28, 2023
- Annals of Plastic Surgery, "," May 2022
- Politico, "," Oct. 8, 2023
