Massachusetts State House.
Policy Library

Conversion Therapy Ban Update

March 01, 2018

You may recall that the BBA is continuing its advocacy in support of H.1190, filed by Representative Kay Khan, and S.62, filed by Senator Mark Montigny. These two identical bills would ban the use of conversion therapy by licensed providers on minors in the Commonwealth. Over the summer, we presented testimony in support of this legislation before the Joint Committee on Children, Families, and Persons with Disabilities, and you can read about that opportunity and why we support the proposed bills here. As we outlined there, this legislation offers necessary legal protection for minors from a practice that medical and child welfare experts agree does not align with current scientific understandings of sexual orientation and gender identity and is not only ineffective but downright unsafe.

Just this week, we continued that effort by submitting a letter to Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, Robert DeLeo, respectfully urging him bring the bill to the House floor for a vote. The letter noted the BBA’s own long history of defending principles of non-discrimination and equal protection and focused on a few of the legal aspects of the legislation.

While the future of federal protections for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) populations remains under threat, it is crucial the Commonwealth ensures that all residents, regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity, are protected from abusive and discriminatory processes – especially children. Hopefully, these protections will finally be codified this year, and Massachusetts can join the nine other states that currently have laws barring the use of conversion therapy on minors. We will, as usual, keep you posted about the status of H.1190 and S.62.

—Alexa Daniel
Legislative and Public Policy Manager
Boston Bar Association