I would prefer the Department of Health to focus on reducing poverty, education inequity,  and gun violence, or increasing healthcare access to the people who will be impacted by the upcoming cuts to Medicaid, or trying to not embezzle money from Virginians.

I wonder what exact "harm" the petitioners experienced other than defeat in collegiate athletics? If that is the greatest harm these young women have experienced in life thus far compelling them to petition for legislation, I wonder if they ever thought about campaigning for the Equal Rights Amendment? 

The number of transgender athletes in collegiate sports, is extremely small. Back in December, NCAA President Charlie Baker testified that, out of the more than 500,000 total college student athletes, he believed fewer than 10 were transgender.  But here are some facts I hope readers of these comments will consider when trying to cut through the volumes of personal opinion in search of concrete data:

Strict NCAA Guidelines Already Exist: Since 2011, the NCAA has had policies in place requiring transgender women to undergo at least one year of testosterone suppression before competing in women’s sports. These guidelines are designed to ensure fairness and have been consistently updated with input from medical experts.

No Evidence of Dominance: Despite these policies being in place for over a decade, there is no widespread domination by transgender athletes in women’s sports. Trans athletes remain a tiny fraction of collegiate competitors, and there are very few examples of them even qualifying for, much less dominating, elite-level competitions.

Biological Diversity Already Exists in Women’s Sports: Female athletes naturally vary in height, muscle mass, and hormone levels. Caster Semenya, an Olympic runner with naturally high testosterone, is a cisgender woman who has faced similar scrutiny, showing that discomfort with "biological differences" isn’t limited to trans athletes—it often reflects broader biases around what women are “supposed” to look or perform like.

Focus on issues that actually impact more than three young women and are under the direct purview of the VDH.