Texas Gov deeming trans affirming care to be child abuse and requiring mandated reporters to report healthcare providers and parents of trans minors

[psych.meout]

Texas Gov. Abbott: Agencies must investigate gender-affirming care for trans kids as ‘child abuse’

AUSTIN — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies to investigate reports of transgender kids receiving gender-affirming care as “child abuse,” but it’s...

www.dallasnews.com

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[WisNeuro]

Seems like the Supremacy Clause would be in play here.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Seems like the Supremacy Clause would be in play here.

Agreed. The Supremacy Clause of the Constitution (Federal law > State law) seems like it should be pretty straight forward, but who knows w. the dumpster fire that is the current SCOTUS. The TX state legislators seem dead set on persecuting and punishing anyone who isn't a straight, white, & christian. It's frightening legislation and just the latest attack on diversity.

 

[futureapppsy2]

Some TX government agency (I want to say the board of social work?) tried to eliminate protections for disabled and LGBTQ+ clients last year, and, luckily, dropped it after getting a lot of pushback, so this isn't the first time in recent history Texas has tried this type of thing.

 

[Temperance]

Some TX government agency (I want to say the board of social work?) tried to eliminate protections for disabled and LGBTQ+ clients last year, and, luckily, dropped it after getting a lot of pushback, so this isn't the first time in recent history Texas has tried this type of thing.

It was the State Board of Social Work Examiners voting unanimously to no longer prohibit social workers from refusing clients on the basis of disability, gender identity, or sexual orientation.

 

[Justanothergrad]

Sigh.

 

[WisNeuro]

Can we let TX secede already and build a wall around it to keep the illegal Texans out from the rest of the US?

 

[ClinicalABA]

Can we let TX secede already and build a wall around it to keep the illegal Texans out from the rest of the US?

I'm with you. These "declarations" aren't based on any cohesive ideology, beyond just being as petulant as possible. The rest of us of us should call their bluff and kick 'em out of the union and let them fend for themselves. They have the same population as Saudi Arabia- let them be their own country without any federal/federalist obligations or benefits and see how well it works out. Isolating from the national electrical grid has worked so well for them, right? I'm getting so sick of this nonsense.

 

[psych.meout]

Possibly a coincidence, but still...

Ex-ERCOT chief says Abbott directed freeze blackouts to stop before decision to run up billions in bills

The former head of the Texas power grid testified in court Wednesday that when he ordered...

www.houstonchronicle.com

 

[deleted106747]

I'm with you. These "declarations" aren't based on any cohesive ideology, beyond just being as petulant as possible. The rest of us of us should call their bluff and kick 'em out of the union and let them fend for themselves. They have the same population as Saudi Arabia- let them be their own country without any federal/federalist obligations or benefits and see how well it works out. Isolating from the national electrical grid has worked so well for them, right? I'm getting so sick of this nonsense.

Can we keep Austin though?

 

[DynamicDidactic]

One of the saddest parts is that this is a political move. I doubt that Abbot actually thinks or cares about what is best for children but is, seemingly, purely trying to score political points for a certain demographic of voters. He has to stave off even more conservative challengers but also make moves to get more national attention. Additionally, he would much rather talk about this than the energy grid debacle (as pointed out earlier).

Sigh

Indeed.

 

[cara susanna]

Haha, yes, this is apparently far more of a priority than Texans losing power for days at a time in the winter.

I wonder what the practice of healthcare providers in this situation would be, in terms of ethics vs. law? We have a similar issue in the VA--VA rules technically require us to report any childhood abuse no matter even if the victim is now fully grown and the perpetrator no longer alive. Our providers grapple with this everyday, because although it's mandated by our facility* it's not in line with our ethics. Not saying that the two situations are THAT similar, but it made me think about that.

*this is actually a VA national thing, but this is the first VA I've been at that didn't ignore it.

 

[WisNeuro]

Haha, yes, this is apparently far more of a priority than Texans losing power for days at a time in the winter.

I wonder what the practice of healthcare providers in this situation would be, in terms of ethics vs. law? We have a similar issue in the VA--VA rules technically require us to report any childhood abuse no matter even if the victim is now fully grown and the perpetrator no longer alive. Our providers grapple with this everyday, because although it's mandated by our facility* it's not in line with our ethics. Not saying that the two situations are THAT similar, but it made me think about that.

*this is actually a VA national thing, but this is the first VA I've been at that didn't ignore it.

When I was out West, our VISN gave us guidance to the contrary. If they were dead or incapacitated, we didn't have to report. Which was nice as I didn't have to report some guy's 90-something year old father who was in a memory care unit for physical abuse when the patient was a minor.

 

[PsyDr]

Oh Texas….

 

[Justanothergrad]

One of the saddest parts is that this is a political move. I doubt that Abbot actually thinks or cares about what is best for children but is, seemingly, purely trying to score political points for a certain demographic of voters. He has to stave off even more conservative challengers but also make moves to get more national attention. Additionally, he would much rather talk about this than the energy grid debacle (as pointed out earlier).


Indeed.

The most frustrating part of this is watching academia try to balance saying something about how this is ABSURD from a research perspective AND also avoid political/funding fights. Clear case of a reason for academic freedom.

 

[Temperance]

Incidentally, the lieutenant governor has been making noises about removing tenure from public universities in the state, so things are just not looking good in Texas.

More relevant to the point of the thread, it looks like issues related to duty to warn are part of a legal interpretation by the Texas attorney general adding gender-affirming care to the definition of child abuse. I don't know how binding that is; some county and district attorneys have gone on record that they'll refuse to enforce the AG's interpretation.

 

[DynamicDidactic]

Incidentally, the lieutenant governor has been making noises about removing tenure from public universities in the state, so things are just not looking good in Texas.

Not to go too much on a tangent but this recently happened:

Chatham U expected to adopt a tenure system again

Chatham University had tenure, then it didn’t. Now it’s slated to adopt tenure again, citing faculty recruitment difficulties and morale problems.

www.insidehighered.com

 

[Fan_of_Meehl]

Haha, yes, this is apparently far more of a priority than Texans losing power for days at a time in the winter.

I wonder what the practice of healthcare providers in this situation would be, in terms of ethics vs. law? We have a similar issue in the VA--VA rules technically require us to report any childhood abuse no matter even if the victim is now fully grown and the perpetrator no longer alive. Our providers grapple with this everyday, because although it's mandated by our facility* it's not in line with our ethics. Not saying that the two situations are THAT similar, but it made me think about that.

*this is actually a VA national thing, but this is the first VA I've been at that didn't ignore it.

I'm confused...is it a Federal *LAW* or just a VA organizational (which happens to be a Federal/National organization) *policy*? If it's not a law, I can see why it is widely ignored because it makes no sense (under the underlying ethic of 'duty to protect').

 

[WisNeuro]

I'm confused...is it a Federal *LAW* or just a VA organizational (which happens to be a Federal/National organization) *policy*? If it's not a law, I can see why it is widely ignored because it makes no sense (under the underlying ethic of 'duty to protect').

Well, there are the underlying statutes and policy, and then there is the way that regional counsel interprets said statures and policy.

 

[singasongofjoy]

....--VA rules technically require us to report any childhood abuse no matter even if the victim is now fully grown and the perpetrator no longer alive. Our providers grapple with this everyday, because although it's mandated by our facility* it's not in line with our ethics. Not saying that the two situations are THAT similar, but it made me think about that.

*this is actually a VA national thing, but this is the first VA I've been at that didn't ignore it.

...are there any states that have laws that you must report if the victim is an adult? I've never heard of it, and I can't imagine a social services program with sufficient staff for that, but the theoretical ramifications of that are interesting to ponder

 

[psych.meout]

...are there any states that have laws that you must report if the victim is an adult? I've never heard of it, and I can't imagine a social services program with sufficient staff for that, but the theoretical ramifications of that are interesting to ponder

I think some states require it for older adults under elder abuse provisions.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

...are there any states that have laws that you must report if the victim is an adult? I've never heard of it, and I can't imagine a social services program with sufficient staff for that, but the theoretical ramifications of that are interesting to ponder

Reporting of past child abuse if the victim is currently an adult? I've heard of some states that require it to be reported regardless of the victim's current age, although there may have been stipulations based on the status of the perpetrator (e.g., if the perpetrator is dead or incapacitated vs. still has contact with children). My current state does not require reporting if the victim is now an adult.

 

[foreverbull]

...are there any states that have laws that you must report if the victim is an adult? I've never heard of it, and I can't imagine a social services program with sufficient staff for that, but the theoretical ramifications of that are interesting to ponder

CA if the adult is a dependent or an elder who is reliant on care.

Also, if someone who is an adult reports past abuse and the adult still has access to minors, that’s an automatic report in CA.