As Molly Sprayregen reported for LGBTQ Nation, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe recently signed a comprehensive appropriations bill for the state’s Department of Corrections that includes a strict prohibition on funding for gender-affirming care. Tucked into the final page of the legislation is a single sentence banning the use of funds for hormone therapy or transition-related surgery, effectively forcing transgender inmates to immediately cease their medical treatments without a structured weaning process.
Medical experts warn that abruptly halting hormone therapy can trigger severe physical and mental health crises, particularly for individuals who have already undergone gender-affirming surgeries. Furthermore, the new policy directly challenges a 2018 district court ruling which determined that denying such care to incarcerated transgender individuals violates the Eighth Amendment.
The provision’s sponsor, state Representative Dirk Deaton, acknowledged the existing court precedent but indicated a desire to test the restriction before a newly appointed, more conservative judiciary. Deaton has publicly argued that incarcerated individuals should not receive these specific medical treatments at the expense of taxpayers.
Read Molly Sprayregen’s complete reporting on the immediate impacts of this legislation, the medical risks involved, and the broader legal context at the original article: https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2026/07/gop-governor-signs-bill-forcing-trans-inmates-to-detransition/
