There's been a recent wave of state legislation that either supports or denies the rights of transgender people, depending on the state New research out of Washington state suggests that once trans people understand their rights are protected, anxiety and depression levels drop The findings are another example of the huge impact state legislation can have on the well-being of trans people THURSDAY, Aug. 22, 2024 (HeathDay News) -- There's a strong association between a state's policies and laws around the rights of transgender people and the mental health of transgender residents, a new study shows. "Trans individuals who were worried about having their rights taken away had significantly higher odds of experiencing depression and anxiety symptoms," the study authors reported Aug.
22 in the journal JAMA Network Open. "Contrarily, those who knew about the state-level protective legislation, specifically protections against hate crimes, had lower odds of depression and anxiety symptoms," said a team led by Arjee Restar , an assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of Washington in Seattle. As Restar's team noted, there's been a vigorous movement in recent years to either restrict or preserve a trans person's access to health care and other services, depending on the state they live in.
"In the last few years, states within the U.S. have advanced a record number of bills targeting the restriction of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and other queer protections and right.