Rep. Lori VanWinkle, R-Minot. (Mary Steurer/North Dakota Monitor)
(BY: MARY STEURER . North Dakota Monitor) – The state Senate defeated a bill 22-25 that originally sought to legalize conversion therapy.
Initially, House Bill 1430 bill would have authorized social workers to provide “a treatment plan or counseling plan that aligns with heterosexuality or the individual’s biological sex,” so long as it was freely chosen by the client.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Lori VanWinkle, R-Minot, who said people should have the right to seek treatments that affirm their religious beliefs about sexuality or gender. She previously told lawmakers that she is concerned most counseling is now LGBTQ-affirming and therefore would not be helpful for someone with anti-LGBTQ beliefs.
“To prohibit counseling that aligns with traditional or biblical viewpoints is religious discrimination,” she said.
The North Dakota Board of Social Work Examiners and North Dakota Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers opposed the bill, arguing that it endorsed a form of treatment widely denounced as ineffective and unethical, and was grounded in misunderstandings about how counseling works.
