Array Supports Transgender and Gender Diverse Individuals

Array strongly opposes all legislative and other governmental attempts to limit access to gender-affirming support and care for transgender and gender diverse youth, or to sanction or criminalize the actions of physicians and other clinicians who provide them. We stand with organizations including the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Medical Association in support of access to affirming and supportive treatment for transgender and gender diverse youth and their families, including appropriate mental health services, and when indicated puberty suppression and medical transition support.

Research shows that foregoing gender-affirming care can have tragic consequences as transgender youth experience disproportionate levels of violence and bullying and are less likely to feel safe at school than cisgender peers (Day et al., 2018).

Access to gender-affirming care positively impacts the mental health of transgender youth and lowers their risk of depression and suicide (Bauer et al., 2015). Transgender youth who have access to gender-affirming medical care experience improvements in mental health and often show mental health comparable to their cisgender peers (Toomey et al., 2022).