FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Encourages United States And Other Like-Minded Nations To Follow UK’s Lead
Burlington, Vt. — Truth Wins Out today commended British MP Geraint Davies for introducing a bill to ban the harmful practice of “conversion therapy” in the United Kingdom. Davies’ bill calls for stricter regulations on therapists and counselors, bringing them under the jurisdiction of the nation’s Health And Care Professions Council for the purpose of guaranteeing that mental health patients receive the best care possible. Davies explained his rationale for introducing the bill, which already has fifty-three sponsors in Parliament:
“Anyone can set themselves up as a counselor or psychotherapist without training or experience with no recourse for the patient if something goes wrong,” he said.
“Millions of people, often with mental health problems who are therefore vulnerable and at risk, are being given therapy in an unregulated industry with no uniform code of conduct or ethics.”
Davies’ bill is far more sweeping than those that have been introduced or passed in the United States, in that it bans the practice of “reparative” therapy across the board, rather than just for minors:
“We commend MP Davies and his co-sponsors for taking the lead in protecting all UK citizens from the consumer fraud known as ‘reparative therapy,'” said Truth Wins Out Executive Director Wayne Besen. “Furthermore, we encourage members of the United States Congress to follow the UK’s lead in tackling this monumental injustice of mental health care, propagated by quack ‘therapists’ who are more concerned about ideology than they are about patient care or science.”
In the United States, bills that ban “reparative” therapy for minors have passed in New Jersey and California, and similar bills are being introduced in Ohio and Pennsylvania. All major American medical and mental health associations, including the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association and the American Psychiatric Association, have condemned the practice.
Truth Wins Out is a nonprofit organization that fights anti-LGBT extremism. TWO specializes in turning information into action by organizing, advocating and fighting for LGBT equality.
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