Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders has expressed strong disapproval of a federal judge's decision to overturn her state's ban on gender-affirming care for minors, characterizing the ruling as prioritizing a political agenda over children's well-being. The Save Adolescents From Experimentation (SAFE) Act, which prohibited such treatments for individuals under 18, was struck down by Judge James M. Moody Jr., an Obama appointee. Sanders criticized the decision, arguing that these procedures are harmful and permanent, and do not constitute appropriate care for children.

Despite this setback, Sanders and Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin have pledged to appeal the ruling to the Eighth Circuit. They maintain that the treatments pose significant risks, including heightened chances of breast and uterine cancers, irreversible infertility, and heart attacks, and that there is a lack of scientific evidence supporting their benefits for children. Griffin emphasized the importance of protecting children from what he considers dangerous medical experimentation.

Judge Moody, however, argued in his 80-page ruling that access to puberty blockers and cross-hormone therapy for transgender youth improves their mental health and well-being. This viewpoint clashes directly with Sanders' and Griffin's stance, setting the stage for a legal battle over the SAFE Act and the future of gender-affirming care for minors in Arkansas.

Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders passed the SAFE Act, legislation banning sex change treatments for minors. (The Associated Press)

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders argued that activists promoting sex change procedures for minors are "subjecting them to permanent and harmful procedures." (Al Drago)