Jodi Hendricks, New Mexico Family Action Movement
February 28, 2025
Every child is precious. Every parent deserves a voice. Families should be empowered to make informed decisions about their children’s well-being. Senate Bill 500, the Detransitioner Protection Act, embodies these principles. This legislation isn’t about politics—it’s about safeguarding our children, upholding parental rights, and ensuring that no family faces difficult decisions alone.
In recent years, there’s been a significant increase in minors undergoing medical treatments for gender transition—some with irreversible consequences. Many minors have received puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries, often without comprehensive long-term research supporting these interventions. Equally concerning is the lack of adequate counseling and informed parental involvement.
SB500 offers a compassionate response by ensuring that no child undergoes irreversible procedures before fully comprehending the lifelong implications. It reinforces a fundamental principle: parents should be informed and involved in their child’s medical care. Additionally, it provides support for individuals who regret their transition and seek to detransition—a group often overlooked in public discourse.
Children and teenagers are continually growing—physically, emotionally, and mentally. Research confirms what parents instinctively understand: young minds aren’t fully developed to make permanent medical decisions. We don’t permit minors to get tattoos, consume alcohol, or sign legal contracts. Why would we allow them to make life-changing medical choices without full parental consent and thorough counseling?
SB500 safeguards children by prohibiting gender transition procedures, including hormone therapies and surgeries, for minors; instead promoting counseling and mental health support, providing children the time and space to navigate their feelings without irreversible outcomes.
Parents have a duty to guide and care for their children. SB500 reinforces the fundamental right of parents to be involved in medical decisions affecting their children. It prevents schools and healthcare providers from withholding information from parents about their child’s gender-related medical care. Moreover, it protects parents from accusations of abuse or neglect simply for questioning or declining gender transition treatments.
Too many parents have shared heartbreaking stories of being kept in the dark while their child was encouraged toward medical transition. No parent should be sidelined regarding their child’s well-being. SB500 ensures transparency and empowers families to make decisions together.
Another critical issue is the growing number of detransitioners—individuals who underwent gender transition but later regretted it and sought to reclaim their biological identity. Many feel abandoned by medical professionals who once encouraged their transition. SB500 ensures that those who regret their transition have access to medical care and support as they work to restore their health and identity.
SB500 isn’t about exclusion or discrimination—it’s about compassion, protection, and responsibility. It ensures that vulnerable children receive the time, care, and support they need to understand themselves without facing irreversible consequences. It reaffirms the role of parents in guiding their children’s healthcare decisions. And it provides assistance to those who decide their past choices weren’t the right path.
Opponents of SB500 might argue that it restricts young people’s choices. In reality, it ensures that young individuals don’t make decisions before they can fully understand them. This bill doesn’t prevent adults from seeking gender-related medical care. Instead, it ensures that life-altering decisions are made with the necessary maturity, knowledge, and support.
At its core, SB500 is about protecting children and strengthening families; ensuring no child is rushed into medical interventions they may later regret, and giving parents a voice and offering hope to forgotten detransitioners.
We urge lawmakers to stand with families and pass SB500. Protecting children shouldn’t be controversial—it should be common sense. Let’s unite, beyond political and ideological lines, to do what’s right for New Mexico’s children, parents, and families.
