RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The Virginia General Assembly is moving to ban the discredited practice of conversion therapy for LGBTQ children. Conversion therapy is a practice used to try to change sexual orientation or gender identity.
The Virginia Senate voted Monday to ban licensed therapists and counselors from subjecting minors to the practice.
The bill now heads to Gov. Ralph Northam, who is expected to sign it. The American Psychological Association has said conversion therapy is not based in science and is harmful to mental health.
Many people who have been through it say it deepened feelings of depression and increased thoughts of suicide. Several Republican lawmakers have joined Democrats in passing the measure.
