A Washington State bill that could remove parents’ rights to intervene in their children’s medical care under certain circumstances passed the House on Wednesday, moving closer to being signed by Gov. Jay Inslee.
Senate Bill 5599, titled “An act relating to supporting youth,” permits host homes for runaway youth to house minors without parental permission.
Additionally, these host homes are not required to inform parents of their children’s whereabouts or any medical interventions they may be receiving if there is a “compelling reason” not to, which includes minors seeking “protected health services.”
Protected health care services encompass “gender-affirming care,” which the bill defines as any treatment prescribed by a doctor to address dysphoria in minors.
This care can be prescribed to two-spirit, transgender, nonbinary, and other gender diverse individuals. Gender-affirming care for minors typically includes puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries. However, the bill does not clearly specify which services would be approved.
Under the bill, instead of contacting parents, shelters can reach out to the Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF).
According to the bill another compelling reason for not notifying parents about their children staying in a host home is if there are circumstances suggesting that doing so would subject the minor to abuse or neglect.
Critics of the bill argue that it constitutes “child abuse.”
They contend that a parent’s job is to protect their child, and the bill removes that ability.
According to the bill’s text, opponents claim that it “legalizes the kidnapping of children, allows for the harboring of minors, and segregates us from the union.”
Following the bill’s passage in the House, Democratic State Rep. Tana Senn, a supporter of the legislation, said, “I am saying tonight to them that I see you, that I affirm you, that I hear you, that I love you,” as reported by Townhall.
However, State Senate Republican Leader John Braun criticized the bill for undermining parents’ rights, stating, “The only thing [the bill] would do is cause harm by driving a wedge between vulnerable kids and their parents, at a time when a teen lacks the perception and judgment to make critical life-altering decisions.”
Braun added that parents might not even know why their child ran away, potentially involving law enforcement or other organizations in a desperate search, while enduring an unnecessary emotional ordeal, imagining the worst possible outcomes.
The bill has drawn comparisons to similar legislation in other states, such as California, which critics have labeled as “state-sanctioned kidnapping.”
In March, California introduced a bill currently under review in the State Senate that would allow students to be admitted into a group home without parental consent, provided they have approval from school counselors.
A counselor who testified against the bill stated, “It is apparent that one result of this bill will be the removal of trans-identified children from the family home.”
Pamela Garfield-Jaeger, who testified against the bill, said, “In the dystopian nightmare we are in, if a parent doesn’t use the child’s chosen pronoun or name, they are labeled dangerous,” according to Daily Signal.