LOUISVILLE, Ky. — There are between 50 and 60 practices offering conversion therapy in Kentucky right now. 

Hundreds of Kentucky youth are likely subjected to conversion therapy each year, a practice aimed at changing an individual’s sexual orientation or sexual identity. 

“We know that it doesn’t just not work, but that it’s dangerous and it’s deadly,” said Chris Hartman, Executive Director of Fairness Campaign. 

LGBTQ youth who undergo this type of “therapy” are more likely to become depressed and suicidal, an estimated 42 percent of youth who have undergone this treatment have attempted suicide. The health risks to youth are the main reason the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky supports banning the practice in Kentucky. 

"The science is pretty clear on this, if you ask any medical professional they'll tell you that conversion therapy, number one, doesn't work, it's been a discredited practice and number two, it leads to very negative results health-wise,” said President & CEO Ben Chandler. 

Many of the people who practice this method describe themselves as “lay counselors” — not therapists. Ban Conversion Therapy Kentucky (BCTK), a statewide nonpartisan group, says these counselors prey on vulnerable families sometimes charging hundreds if not thousands of dollars for their services.

“These lay counselors exploit that dynamic and under the guise, under the fraudulent veil that they are a mental health professional goes to these parents and exploit them in their fear in a time where they need understanding the most, professional help the most to guide them,” said Michael Frazier, Legislative Action and Government Affairs Director for BCTK. "That’s what our counselors should do.”

Two bills have been filed in the state legislature and an ordinance has been filed in Louisville Metro Council seeking to make conversion therapy on minors illegal. 

The measures in filed in the Kentucky General Assembly are bipartisan, with Republican Sen. Alice Forgy Kerr, R-Lexington. and Democrat Rep. Lisa Willner, D-Louisville, pre-filing bills in their respective chambers. 

Willner is the only licensed psychologist in the General Assembly and speaks to the importance of preventing this type of practice from happening in Kentucky. 

“It is so important that our licensed folks are not engaging in practices that are putting our kids at risk,” she said. 

The measure would only apply to professionals licensed in the state of Kentucky which Willner acknowledges is a criticism of the bill. 

“We cannot legislate for people who do not hold a license, but that does not mean we should stop short of doing what we can do to eliminate these practices in Kentucky,” she said. 

The ordinance filed by Louisville Metro Councilman Bill Hollander is very similar to the bills filed in the statehouse and would only apply to licensed practitioners in the state. Hollander notes the American Medical Association has recently come out against the practice supporting a nationwide ban on conversion therapy and believes he will have considerable support for this. 

“Really I think this is a situation where you will look back and really wonder why we were having a conversation about this in 2020,” he said. 

Banning conversion therapy on youth has become a bipartisan issue in Kentucky. 

"I don't think that it's a partisan issue to say that we should protect the most vulnerable,” said Frazier. "And if they get to the capacity to make the choice as an adult, we respect their freedom to do that.”

“This is not a social issue. This is a health issue,” said Chandler. "What we're talking about really is the health of our citizens.”

The measure does not prevent anyone from seeking advice from pastors, priests, or other religious leaders to protect freedom of religion, however, many leaders in the faith community are in support of banning the use of this practice on minors. 

“We’ve seen research that it’s not only associated with suicide risk, anxiety, depression, self-harm, substance abuse, but also loss of faith,” Willner said. “So we have faith leaders who are standing up for our LGBTQ kids saying that these practices are harmful.”

The Louisville Metro Community Affairs, Health, and Education Committee will be hearing the ordinance on September 9, and Hartman believes the council could take action on banning the practice soon. 

“I will be shocked if Louisville didn't pass the conversion therapy ban swiftly,” he said. "I’m hopeful that we'll see bipartisan support, it could be unanimous.”

Advocates against the practice are pleased to see some momentum from lawmakers to outlaw the practice. 

“It finally validates the experience of the trauma, frankly, at some points the torture that these kids and parents have underwent in the pseudo practice, frankly, this fraudulent practice of conversion therapy,” said Frazier. 

“You just cannot pray the gay away, you cannot turn someone cisgender who is transgender, people are who they are and if we support them, that's where the statistics get great,” said Hartman.

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month and Willner says this is the perfect time to discuss the importance of the bills in the legislature and Louisville Metro Council. 

“Any other practice that was associated with 42 percent rates of suicide attempts of kids exposed it’s impossible to imagine that we would not ban that practice,” she said. 

Covington became the first city in Kentucky to ban the practice earlier this year. 

In total, there are 20 states, around 70 cites, and 5 countries that ban conversion therapy.