The American Civil Liberties Union has tracked more than 400 anti-LGBTQ+ bills nationwide since 2026. Many anti-transgender bills and LGBTQ+ book bans have been accepted at the state and federal levels. As the Trump administration pushes for conservatism, the Supreme Court has reviewed cases that challenge state bans on conversion therapy.
On March 25, 2025, three Republicans on the Supreme Court filed a petition to review the Chiles v. Salazar case. The case questioned whether Colorado’s ban on Conversion therapy was against the First Amendment. Petitioner Kaley Chiles filed a lawsuit against Colorado Law, arguing that it restricted her freedom of speech. Halting “any practice or treatment” – including talk therapy – that “attempts or purports to change” a minor’s “sexual orientation or gender identity.”
The Colorado courts continued to keep the ban on conversion therapy, but the Supreme Court offered its insight into the case, filing an amicus curiae or “friend of the court” brief. The Trump administration stated that the ban went against free speech and religious freedom. The administration claimed that there was no evidence of harm from conversion therapy, but opponents claim conversion therapy is harmful and ineffective. Clinical reports have confirmed that conversion therapy forces individuals to attempt to identify with sexual orientation and gender identity that is in direct contrast to their authentic true selves by inflicting mental anguish, guilt and humiliation.
In North Carolina, the Human Rights Campaign has actively supported efforts to ban conversion therapy. While a statewide legislative ban on the practice by licensed professionals is not currently in place, North Carolina has taken steps to restrict the funding of such practices. Key details on the status of conversion therapy in North Carolina include:
Executive Order 97 (2019): In August 2019, Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order No. 97, which prohibits the use of state and federal funds for conversion therapy on minors, an action lauded by HRC as a “crucial step forward.”
Funding Restriction: This order bans the use of taxpayer funds (such as NC Medicaid and NC Health Choice) by the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) for conversion therapy.
Limitations of the Order: The executive order does not stop private or religious entities from performing conversion therapy, and it does not explicitly ban licensed professionals from practicing it, according to Equality NC.
As of early 2026, North Carolina is one of only eight states with no comprehensive law to ban the practice, with roughly seven percent of LGBTQ+ youth in the state reporting they have been subjected to it, according to reports, also cited by Equality NC.
Many who have gone through conversion therapy have experienced long-lasting trauma. According to the Trevor Project, queer people and youth are more than twice as likely to attempt suicide. Their 2021 National survey stated that 13 percent of LGBTQ+ youth have gone tthrough conversion therapy, and the majority said they were under the age of 18. Besides the mental trauma, researchers found that conversion therapy can negatively affect the socioeconomic status, self-esteem and education of young people.
The Trump administration currently supports the practice of conversion therapy – they refer to it as “gender exploration therapy” and attempt to legitimize it through the guise of the right to “religious liberty.”
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and a Trump appointee, stated, “Our duty is to protect our nation’s children – not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions.” He continued, “We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas.”
Trump has attacked the LGBTQ+ community through health care, education, finances and everyday life by removing transgender members of the armed forces from military service, issuing an anti-DEI executive order and canceling grants approved for LGBTQ+ organizations.
Currently, over 1,300 therapists nationwide still offer conversion or advocating for “gender exploration” therapy. Gender exploration therapy is still considered a form of conversion therapy. GLAAD, an organization of LGBTQ+ watchdogs, calls gender exploratory therapy another way to “promote the harmful and discredited practice of so-called conversion ‘therapy.’”
Licensed therapists, counselors, social workers, unlicensed practitioners, “advocate for and or directly engage in” conversion therapy claiming to help clients, “align their behavior with their faith.”
As of right now, 22 states and the District of Columbia have banned conversion therapy since 2025. If the Supreme Court and the Trump administration continue to promote “conversion therapy” or “gender exploration therapy,” more state governments will likely follow.