Raised Bill No. 214 seeks to amend and consolidate existing statutes to include and protect gender-affirming health care services alongside reproductive health care services. The bill introduces a definition for "gender-affirming health care services," aligning it with medical standards recognized by the American Psychiatric Association and the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems. It renumbers subsequent definitions and ensures that gender-affirming health care services are included in legal protections and liabilities. The bill also modifies Section 52-146w to address the confidentiality of communications related to both reproductive and gender-affirming health care services, detailing when written consent for disclosure is not required. Furthermore, it amends Section 52-155a to limit the issuance of subpoenas in cases involving reproductive and gender-affirming health care services, particularly when they relate to out-of-state actions that conflict with the protections of the state where the bill is enacted.
The bill also aims to protect individuals and entities involved in providing or receiving reproductive and gender-affirming health care services from legal actions initiated in other states where such services may be criminalized. It prevents the issuance of summons for witnesses to testify in another state if the investigation pertains to criminal violations involving health care services that are legal in the witness's home state, unless those acts would also be offenses in the home state. The bill prohibits public agencies or their representatives from supporting interstate investigations or proceedings that seek to impose liability for legally provided health care services. It includes the insertion of "gender-affirming health care services" into sections that mention reproductive health care services, repeals sections 52-146x, 52-155b, and 54-155b of the general statutes, and section 52-571n of the 2024 supplement to the general statutes, with the intent to consolidate legal provisions related to both types of health care services, effective July 1, 2024.
Statutes affected: Raised Bill: 52-146w, 52-155a, 54-155a