PA Joins Lawsuit Protecting Gender-Affirming Care
“This church is committed to affirming throughout life the value, beauty, and health of the human body and human sexuality. It is mindful that physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual wellness contribute to a lower incidence of at-risk behaviors for all people, including youth” - ELCA Social Statement on Human Sexuality
"This understanding of human wholeness means that concern for health should attend to the physical, mental, spiritual, and communal dimensions of a person’s entire well-being. Health is good for its own sake; it also is good for living abundantly in relationship with God and in loving service to our neighbor in the vocations to which God has called us." - ELCA Social Statement on Caring for Health: A Shared Endeavor
On August 1, Governor Shapiro joined the Attorneys General of 15 other states and the District of Colombia in a lawsuit that opposes an executive order that unlawfully intimidates health care providers into stopping gender-affirming care for transgender youth,
This action comes after UPMC, Penn State, and other Pennsylvania-based healthcare systems have suspended their coverage of gender-affirming care for youth, despite that care remaining legal in all the states filing in the lawsuit.
The LGBTQ+ community and allies rallied together this summer to call on Governor Shapiro to be more vocal and to use the power of the office of the Governor to stand for LGBTQ+ rights, including gender-affirming care. Lutherans and other people of faith joined in this effort, sending hundreds of Pride Postcards calling for the governor to take action.
Use our tool to send a message of thanks to Governor Shapiro for joining this lawsuit in support of our trans kids, families, and the LGBTQ+ community across Pennsylvania. Use your voice to encourage him to continue to use his to help create a PA that is boldly welcoming and diverse, where all can thrive as their whole selves.
[Posted 8/4/2025]
