Pennsylvania health boards condemn conversion therapy

All five relevant state regulatory boards in Pennsylvania have adopted policies opposing conversion therapy for minors and are warning the professionals they license that they could be punished for violating them.

The state Board of Nursing on Thursday joined the boards of medicine, psychology, osteopathic medicine and social workers, marriage and family therapists and professional counselors, all of which recently voted to adopt new policy statements stating that minors should not be subjected to the discredited and harmful practice. Conversion therapy aims to make LGBTQ+ people straight and/or cisgender.

“This decisive action makes it clear that the harmful, dangerous practice of conversion therapy has no place here in our Commonwealth,” Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said in a news release. “We value true freedom here in Pennsylvania – and no matter what you look like, where you come from, who you pray to or who you love, you should be able to express who you are and be free from harassment and discrimination. My administration will continue to work to ensure that everyone is protected, feels welcome and can thrive in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

The new policy notifies licensees that all five boards consider the use of conversion therapy to be unprofessional and harmful conduct and that any licensee who engages in it may be subject to administrative discipline.

“As hateful rhetoric and pseudoscience continue to dominate the clinical experiences of many LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians, knowing that our state regulatory boards saw fit to implement these protections is a small burden off our shoulders,” said Ashleigh Strange, Executive Director of the Governor’s Office Advisory Commission on LGBTQ+ Affairs, the release said. “This is a solid step to let people know that identifying as LGBTQ+ is not a disease or a crime in Pennsylvania. You have a safe place here.”

The Trevor Project, which serves LGBTQ+ youth in crisis, including those considering suicide, told state officials this year that conversion therapy remains a problem in Pennsylvania despite an August 2022 executive order from then-Gov. Tom Wolf wanted to discourage the practice. Lawmakers have tried to pass bills banning the use of conversion therapy on minors, but those bills have all stalled.

Troy Stevenson, director of state advocacy campaigns at the Trevor Project, issued a statement praising Pennsylvania’s action. “The Trevor Project study found that young people who reported undergoing conversion therapy were more than twice as likely to report having attempted suicide in the past year,” he said. “Knowing that an estimated 44 percent of LGBTQ+ youth, including 54 percent of transgender and nonbinary youth, in Pennsylvania have seriously considered suicide in the past year, these actions are especially critical to ensuring health and safety of young people across the state. We are the Shapiro Administration, the Pennsylvania Commission on LGBTQ Affairs, the National Association of Social Workers Pennsylvania Chapter, the Pennsylvania Psychological Association, PFLAG, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, the Human Rights Campaign, and mental health professionals and advocates grateful all over the world. Commonwealth, for their work over recent years to protect the mental health and wellbeing of young people across the Commonwealth.”

According to the Movement Advancement Project, 22 states and the District of Columbia have banned the use of conversion therapy on minors. Five other states and Puerto Rico have taken measures amounting to a partial ban. Numerous cities and counties have also issued bans.

The American Medical Association, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association and many other professional groups have rejected the practice due to a lack of scientific evidence supporting it and the risk of harm it poses to minors.