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Our call — vote YES
The measure
This is a citizen-initiated statute. It prohibits healthcare professionals from providing surgeries to persons under 18 that alter biological sex characteristics as a treatment in response to a minor's perception of sex or gender, and prohibits the use of government funds or health insurance — including Medicaid — to pay for such surgeries.
What YES does
A YES vote bans gender-transition surgeries for minors in Colorado and bars public and insurance payment for them.
What NO does
A NO vote maintains current Colorado law, which protects access to these surgeries for minors and allows public and private insurance to pay for them.
The math
The Blue Book's fiscal analysis, as reproduced in the guide cited below, identifies no change to any tax, TABOR refund, or revenue destination for this measure. No dollar fiscal estimate is published for it.
OUR CALL
Our call: YES.
These are irreversible operations on children who cannot consent to permanent consequences — a minor cannot sign a contract or get a tattoo in Colorado, yet current law protects access to surgeries that end fertility and sexual function. The state routinely sets age floors for irreversible decisions. Protecting minors until they are adults who can decide for themselves is a parental-rights and child-protection YES.
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Sources
- Ballotpedia, List of Colorado ballot measures — https://ballotpedia.org/List_of_Colorado_ballot_measures
- Colorado 2026 State Ballot Information Booklet (Blue Book), Legislative Council Staff, as reproduced in the Colorado 2026 ballot measures guide — https://whipplewood.com/insights/colorado-2026-ballot-measures-guide/
Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.
AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.