Senate President Kathleen Passidomo warned a House bill that trans advocates are fighting against won't be heard in her chamber, but that didn't stop the House from reading it a second time Thursday during a nearly hourlong debate.
"This bill is very problematic. It shouldn't even be heard," said Angela Nixon, a Jacksonville Democrat. "It's not going to be heard in the Senate, so I really don't know why we are here."
But bill sponsor Rep. Doug Bankson argued, "This is a good bill that suffered some bad press and created some unfounded fears."
Under HB 1639, driver's licenses would be required to state someone's sex assigned at birth. Currently, people who are transgender can change their licenses to reflect their gender.
Under the bill, health insurance companies covering prescriptions or procedures as part of transgender care will also provide coverage for treatment to de-transition "for an appropriate additional premium" starting Jan. 1, 2025, according to the staff analysis.
Insurance companies offering transgender care will also be required to provide additional policies that do not offer that option.
Bankson, a Republican from Apopka, said his bill changing gender to sex on driver's licenses removes confusion and clarifies state statutes. He called his legislation the "Compassion and Clarity Bill."
Democrats argued not allowing transgender people to state their gender on their licenses could create confusion in situations like at the airport.
Rep. Dean Black, a Jacksonville Republican, countered by saying, "It's no different from someone who's born with blue eyes who gets green contacts. They'll appear as they appear, but we all understand that their sex is an immutable biological characteristic."
Democrats pushed back, voicing concerns about marginalizing the transgender community further and worried about how the bill could affect insurance costs.
Rep. Kelly Skidmore said the bill intends to blame transgender people when insurance premiums go up as she read the bill's language about "additional premiums."
"The provisions in this bill mandate higher health insurance costs for every Floridian," the Boca Raton Democrat said.
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