Arizona transgender bathroom bill won't move

PHOENIX (AP) — The sponsor of an Arizona bill targeting transgendered people who want to use bathrooms of the gender they identify with says he's giving up on the issue this Legislative session.

Republican Rep. John Kavanagh said Wednesday there's concern in his caucus about some of his proposal's definitions, so it will have to be shelved until next year.

Kavanagh caused a national uproar in March when he proposed the bathroom privacy language.

The original bill would have made it a crime for a transgendered person to use a bathroom other than the one designated for his or her birth sex.

After an outcry from advocacy groups, Kavanagh changed the measure to instead shield businesses from civil or criminal liability if they ban people from restrooms that don't match their birth sex.

Via Yahoo News!

Report: Study of gay, transgender health needed

and when they do, there's little research to guide doctors in their treatment.

Thursday's report says changing that starts with a seemingly simple step: Researchers should ask people about their sexual orientation and gender identity, just as they routinely ask about race and ethnicity, in all government-funded health studies.

The report was welcomed by the gay-rights community as a long-needed step in addressing health disparities.

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