Gov. Beshear to sign executive order Wednesday banning conversion therapy in Kentucky | Politics [Video]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is expected to sign an executive order Wednesday that will ban conversion therapy in Kentucky.

Conversion therapy is a form of counseling that attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity.

State Rep. Lisa Willner (D-Louisville) introduced House Bill 162 in February of 2023, which would prohibit all licensed mental health providers from engaging in any practices that purport to change a minor’s sexual orientation or gender identity. 

The Youth Mental Health Protection Act was co-sponsored by Rep. Killian Timoney (R-Lexington). The bill also would prohibit any agency that provides conversion therapy practices or refers minors to them from receiving state funding.

Bills to ban conversion therapy in Kentucky have been introduced in the past, and Louisville officially banned conversion therapy on minors in 2020.

At least 20 states and the District of Columbia have outlawed conversion therapy for minors, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a pro-LGBTQ rights …