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Russian MPs give initial backing to sex reassignment surgery ban

The bill bans public records offices from correcting and changing documents on the basis of gender-affirmation certificates issued by medical organizations

MOSCOW, June 14. /TASS/. Russia’s lower house of parliament, the State Duma, passed in the first reading on Wednesday a bill banning gender-affirming surgery, except for cases of treating congenital anomalies in children.

Besides, civil registry offices will be prohibited from making changes to any documents based on medical certificates confirming gender reassignment.

The bill was initiated by State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin and the leaders of the five factions in May.

Thus, the law on health protections for Russian nationals will be supplemented with a provision banning "medical interventions geared to swap gender," including surgeries to change primary or secondary sex characteristics.

Medical interventions will only be permitted to treat birth abnormalities in children "upon a decision from a medical commission of a federal state-run public health institution." The list of such institutions and the procedure for issuing such decisions will be approved by the government, according to the bill.

Apart from that, the bill bans public records offices from correcting and changing documents on the basis of gender-affirmation certificates issued by medical organizations. Relevant amendments are to be made to the law on civil status acts. Under the current law, public records offices can change personal documents on the basis of a medical certificate indicating that a sex change has taken place.

The bill suggests that this practice should cease to be in force.

Russia’s Health Ministry agrees that gender-affirming surgery cannot be conducted only on the basis of the patients’ will or other illegal actions. According to Health Minister Mikhail Murashko, decisions on surgery and hormone treatment should be taken only by high-level medical commissions involving federal institutions.

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