Gender-Affirming Rights Act.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 502

Short Title: Gender-Affirming Rights Act. (Public)
Sponsors: Representative Dahle.
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
March 26, 2025
*H502-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO REPEAL THE PROHIBITION OF GENDER TRANSITION PROCEDURES ON 2
MINORS ACT AND THE E XPENDITURE OF STATE FUNDS ON THOSE 3
PROCEDURES. 4
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
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PART I. REPEAL PROHIBITION OF GENDER TRANSITION PROCEDURES 7
SECTION 1.(a) Article 1N of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is repealed. 8
SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 143C-6-5.5 is repealed. 9
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PART II. GENDER-AFFIRMING RIGHTS ACT 11
SECTION 2. Chapter 90 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article 12
to read: 13
"Article 1O. 14
"Gender-Affirming Rights Act. 15
"§ 90-21.160. Short title. 16
This Article shall be known and may be cited as the "Gender-Affirming Rights Act." 17
"§ 90-21.161. Definitions. 18
The following definitions apply in this Article: 19
(1) Gender-affirming care. – A service or product that a health care professional 20
prescribes or provides to an individual to support and affirm the individua l's 21
gender identity. Gender -affirming care includes treatment for gender 22
dysphoria. Gender -affirming treatment can be prescribed to Two Spirit, 23
transgender, nonbinary, and other gender diverse individuals. 24
(2) Health care professional . – A professional licensed or certified under this 25
Chapter or Ch apter 90B of the General Statutes who provides face -to-face 26
health care services or telehealth services to patients in this State. 27
(3) LGBTQ. – Individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, 28
gender nonconforming, queer, or question their sexual orientation or gender 29
identity and expression. 30
"§ 90-21.162. Gender freedom; fundamental rights; findings. 31
The North Carolina General Assembly finds the following: 32
(1) Every individual has a fundamental right to make autonomous decisions about 33
the individual's own gender and related gender-affirming health care. 34
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 502-First Edition
(2) The North Carolina Constitution guarantees that all persons are created equal, 1
including life, liberty, the enjoyment of the fruits of their own labor, and the 2
pursuit of happiness. 3
"§ 90-21.163. Limitation; local governments. 4
A unit of local government or other political subdivision of the State shall not regulate an 5
individual's right to freely exercise the fundamental rights set forth in this section in a manner 6
that is more restrictive than that set forth in this Article. 7
"§ 90-21.164. Health care professional training. 8
(a) In addition to any continuing education requirements, h ealth care professionals 9
licensed under this C hapter and Chapter 90B of the General Statutes shall take continuing 10
education or professional development hours of instruction on cultural competency or specialized 11
clinical training focusing on LGBTQ patients. 12
(b) The continuing education under this section shall provide, at a minimum, information 13
and skills to enable a health care professional to care effectively and respectfully for LGBTQ 14
patients, including all of the following: 15
(1) How to use cultural information and terminology to establish clinical 16
relationships. 17
(2) Training that improves the understanding and application, in a clinical setting, 18
of relevant data concerning health disparities and risk factors. 19
(3) Training that outlines the legal obligations associated with treatment. 20
(4) Best practices for collecting, storing, usin g, and keeping confidential 21
information regarding sexual orientation and gender identity. 22
(5) Best practices for training support staff regarding treatment. 23
(6) Training that improves the understanding of the intersections between systems 24
of oppression and discrimination and improves the recognition that LGBTQ 25
patients may experience these systems in varying degrees of intensity. 26
(7) Training that addresses underlying cultural biases aimed at improving the 27
provision of nondiscriminatory care for LGBTQ patients." 28
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PART III. EFFECTIVE DATE 30
SECTION 3. This act is effective when it becomes law. 31