Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has decided our children need protecting from existing transgender policies. She must not have been aware that these minors were already protected. They were protected by their parents and their doctors. Minors were not receiving treatment without parental consent and the agreement of their doctors. These doctors were following accepted medical best practices.
How much consultation with medical experts in the field of transgender treatment was there by the premier? Why does our premier believe she knows enough to outweigh medical experts and the minor's parents? The people who are best qualified to make decisions are doctors and parents, not the government. If waiting until the minor was 18 was the best decision for them, that is what would happen with parental and doctor guidance.
This seems like an attempt to solidify the support of Take Back Alberta voters. To deny parental rights and supersede medical experts to the detriment of the treatment of patients for votes is a horrible act. This is a medical issue not a political one; just because this has become a favourite talking point south of the border doesn’t mean it needs to come up here. Uninformed people who have never had to deal with the treatment of a transgender minor should butt out. Issues like this usually arise when a government needs to look like they are doing something when they aren’t. Fix health care, address orphan wells, tackle the housing problem, give us a plan to fight global warming, or plans to mitigate the impending drought in southern Alberta. This is what I expect from my government.
Mark Graunke, St. Albert
