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HB 2071

Enacting the help not harm act to restrict the use of state funds to promote gender transitioning, prohibit healthcare providers from providing gender transition whose gender identity is inconsistent with the child's sex, authorize a civil cause of action against healthcare providers for providing such treatments, require professional discipline against a healthcare provider who performs such treatment and prohibit professional liability insurance from covering damages for healthcare providers that provide gender transition treatment to children and adding violation of the act to the definition of unprofessional conduct for physicians.

2025-2026 Regular Session

HB 2071 would ban most medical/surgical gender-affirming care for minors inconsistent with biological sex, block state funding or coverage, and impose professional penalties.

Stricken from Calendar by Rule 1507
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Bill Summary · HB 2071

Summary — HB 2071 (Help Not Harm Act) — Kansas (2025)

Status: Introduced Jan 24, 2025; amended in House Committee on Health and Human Services; Stricken from Calendar by Rule 1507 (Feb 20, 2025).

Main purpose

HB 2071, titled the "Help Not Harm Act," would ban most medical and surgical interventions intended to alter or treat a minor’s gender identity when that identity or perceived gender/sex is inconsistent with the minor’s biological sex. The bill also would restrict state funding, licensing, insurance coverage, and use of state property or personnel in support of those interventions, and create civil and professional penalties for providers who violate the law.

Key provisions

  • Definitions: defines “child” (<18), “sex” (biological), “gender,” “perceived sex/gender,” and “social transitioning.”
  • Medical and surgical prohibitions (for treatment of distress related to perceived gender/sex inconsistent with biological sex):
    • For female children: bans specified surgeries (e.g., vaginectomy, hysterectomy, oophorectomy, metoidioplasty, phalloplasty, chest surgery, certain voice or implant procedures), supraphysiologic testosterone/androgens, and puberty blockers that suppress estrogen/progesterone.
    • For male children: bans specified surgeries (e.g., penectomy, orchiectomy, vaginoplasty, augmentation mammoplasty, facial feminization), supraphysiologic estrogen, and puberty blockers that suppress testosterone.
  • State funds and programs: prohibits recipients of state funds (including Kansas Medicaid/the Kansas Program of Medical Assistance and its managed care organizations) from using funds to provide or reimburse for the prohibited treatments; recipients who treat children for psychological conditions are barred from prescribing, administering, or referring for these treatments.
  • State property and employees: generally prohibits using state property to promote or provide social transitioning, medication, or surgery for minors (subject to First Amendment limits); restricts certain state employees from promoting or providing such treatments in their official capacity.
  • Professional discipline and liability:
    • Violation defined as unprofessional conduct; licensing entities must revoke provider licenses.
    • Private civil cause of action created; strict liability standard with a statute of limitations of 10 years from the individual’s 18th birthday.
    • Professional liability insurance policies barred from covering damages arising from prohibited treatments.
  • Exceptions and transition:
    • Carved out medically verifiable disorders of sex development (DSD) and treatment for medical conditions (e.g., infections, injuries) caused or exacerbated by listed procedures.
    • Contains transitional protocols for patients already receiving prohibited drugs/treatments before the bill’s effective date (providers must follow discontinued/tapering plans and document harm from immediate cessation). (Text truncated in available materials; introduced version included an end date for continuation of treatment.)

Who would be affected

  • Transgender and gender-diverse minors and their families (directly) — access to listed medical/surgical interventions would be restricted.
  • Healthcare providers who treat minors — exposure to license revocation, civil liability, and loss of insurance coverage for the specified treatments.
  • State agencies and programs (Medicaid/managed care, entities receiving state funds) — barred from paying for or promoting prohibited treatments.
  • Professional liability insurers — prohibited from covering provider liability for such treatments.
  • Judiciary and Attorney General — potentially increased litigation defending and adjudicating claims.

Fiscal and administrative impacts

  • Judicial branch: Office of Judicial Administration anticipates possible increases in district-court filings and related workload; docket fees/fines could generate some State General Fund receipts but net fiscal effect cannot be estimated.
  • Attorney General: potential increase in defense litigation costs; fiscal effect not estimated.
  • Kansas State Board of Healing Arts: expects more complaints/investigations but believes these are manageable within current resources.
  • Kansas Insurance Department and Health Care Stabilization Fund: report no anticipated fiscal effect.
  • Bill (as amended) would take effect upon publication in the Kansas Register.

Procedural/timeline note

HB 2071 was introduced and received committee consideration and an amended committee report, but was subsequently stricken from the calendar under Rule 1507 (no further action while on the calendar).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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