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The UK’s Puberty Blocker Ban is State-Sanctioned Child Abuse
Ban announced despite concerns around suicide risk and criticism of the government’s unethical puberty-blocker trial
The UK’s Health Secretary Wes Streeting has that the temporary ban on puberty-blocking medication for those under 18 will become permanent on 1 January 2025.
Can anyone still get puberty blockers?
Those already prescribed puberty blockers before the temporary ban was introduced in May 2024 can continue to access them. However, new prescriptions are illegal, and the ban won’t be reviewed until 2027.
Anyone supplying or buying puberty blockers for the treatment of gender dysphoria will be criminalised and can receive a fine and up to two years in prison.
The only way to legally access puberty blockers will be by taking part in a clinical trial run by the NHS. However, the date for the beginning of the study has still to be announced.
Furthermore, the proposed trial has drawn criticism from the Council of Europe and professional medical bodies for breaching medical ethics around informed consent and coercion.
