Colorado's Conversion Therapy Ban Goes Into Effect

DENVER, CO — A bill that bans the controversial "conversion therapy" for LGBTQ minors in Colorado goes into effect Friday. Colorado became the 18th state to ban the practice, which aims to change a person's sexual orientation.

Conversion therapy has been widely discredited by medical and mental health professionals and organizations. The American Medical Association calls the practice "unethical" and says it's not based on any medical or scientific evidence. The American Psychiatric Association states that those who undergo the so-called "therapy" face "significant risk of harm."

“After five attempts in the last five years, Colorado has finally taken the significant step in protecting our LGBTQ youth by banning the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion therapy," said Daniel Ramos, executive director of One Colorado. "Conversion therapy is based on the false claim that being LGBTQ is a mental illness that needs to be cured – a view that has been rejected as scientifically invalid by every major medical and mental health group. No young person should ever be shamed by a mental health professional into thinking that who they are is wrong. Mental health care should be ethical and affirming for all people – including LGBTQ young people. I applaud the Colorado General Assembly for their bipartisan support of this measure. Protecting our LGBTQ youth is not a partisan issue.”

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New Jersey became the first U.S. state to ban the practice in 2013, followed by California the same year. This year, New Hampshire, New York and Massachusetts outlawed conversion therapy, and Maine enacted a ban on the practice in June.

The Human Rights Campaign said research shows the practice can "pose devastating health risks for LGBTQ young people such as depression, decreased self-esteem, substance abuse, homelessness, and even suicidal behavior."

Under Colorado's new ban, any medical or mental health professional who practices conversion therapy can lose their license. Religious leaders who hold medical licenses cannot offer the service as a medical professional.

More than 600,000 people in the country have received conversion therapy at some point in their lives, according to a 2018 study by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law.