Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear recently vetoed a bill aiming to reverse his Executive Order prohibiting conversion therapy, a practice that aims to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity. However, proponents seeking to legalize this controversial practice in the state may still succeed.
Kentucky Republicans, set to convene on Thursday for the conclusion of their legislative session, are anticipated to override the governor’s veto. This adds to the growing number of assaults against LGBTQ+ individuals—particularly youths— that have escalated in recent years. The ACLU’s legislative tracker shows that over 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in state legislatures for the 2025 session.
Michael Bronski, a Harvard professor specializing in gender studies, notes, “What we’re witnessing now is the outcome of a revitalized coalition of groups—all predominantly conservative—heightened, especially at this time, by aspects of Christian nationalism.”
As legislative sessions wrap up in various states, experts do not foresee a widespread trend of state laws attempting to reverse conversion therapy bans in the 23 states where they exist. Cathryn Oakley, the Human Rights Campaign’s senior director of legal policy, explains, “States are more likely to address the issue in slightly different ways.”
Oakley predicts states will “blur the crucial distinction between efforts to ban conversion therapy—which halt fraudulent, abusive methods contrary to medical advice—and efforts to prevent transgender teens from accessing best-practice, medically-endorsed, evidence-based transition-related care.” The Supreme Court is set to rule on U.S. v. Skrmetti this year, challenging Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for youth and potentially limiting care for adults.
Medical bodies like the American Psychological Association and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry have discredited conversion therapy, labeling it both ineffective in altering a person’s identity and harmful.
Studies show that youth exposed to conversion therapy are over twice as likely to attempt suicide, according to a peer-reviewed study by the Trevor Project published in the American Journal of Public Health. Nearly 30% of LGBTQ+ youth who attempted suicide in 2023 had undergone conversion therapy, as per the Trevor Project’s 2024 national survey on the mental health of LGBTQ+ individuals aged 13 to 24. Conversion therapy is also associated with increased depression and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, according to a 2024 study by Stanford Medicine researchers.
Although there is no nationwide ban on conversion therapy, it persists in the U.S. Despite laws in nearly half of the country prohibiting the practice, registered therapists offering conversion therapy services are present in every state except Hawaii and Vermont as of 2023. Some therapists circumvent bans by marketing their services as “reparative therapy
The Trevor Project’s director of law and policy, Casey Pick, points out the underlying rationale behind anti-trans legislation, stating that the belief that gender identity can be changed fuels the push to ban access to health care for transgender youth. This ideology, rooted in conversion therapy, has been a driving force behind recent anti-trans laws. The Supreme Court is set to hear a case challenging Colorado’s conversion therapy ban, with the Alliance Defending Freedom representing a counselor arguing that the ban infringes on free speech rights. While some courts have upheld bans on conversion therapy, others have ruled in favor of therapists’ free speech rights. With a Supreme Court ruling expected in June 2026, experts hope for a definitive stance against conversion therapy bans to protect vulnerable communities. Despite bipartisan support for conversion therapy bans, the Trump Administration and Republicans have taken actions limiting transgender rights, signaling a broader attack on marginalized groups. The ultimate aim, according to experts, is to erase queer visibility through measures like conversion therapy. For mental health support, contact 988 or seek help from local resources.
