FHSAA Removes Required Menstrual History Questions, Adds ‘Sex Assigned at Birth’ to Form

The Florida High School Athletics Association (FHSAA) voted to remove all menstrual history questions from the mandatory portion of its new pre-participation form, but the organization will now ask for students’ “sex assigned at birth” instead of just their sex.

The change was made at an emergency meeting held Thursday after backlash from parents, health care providers, and Florida legislators. Before the vote, the board shared 150 public comments, most of them in opposition to the required questions about students’ menstrual history.

“This is a huge invasion of privacy, not necessary, and absolutely creepy,” one commenter said. Others pointed out the double standard of not requiring boys to submit personal medical details.

“It is clear that your agenda is a political one, and it has no place in our schools,” another added.

The board voted 14-2 to remove all menstrual history questions from the form. The board will vote again at the end of the month to approve the latest recommendations.

If the new “sex assigned at birth” question is adopted, the responses could be used to out transgender students. Florida governor Ron DeSantis banned trans girls from playing girls’ sports in the summer of 2021.

In October, the FHSAA revealed that it was digitizing its annual physical form for students. The form featured optional questions regarding students’ menstruation cycles, prompting outcry over the consequences of digitizing that data. In the past, only a doctor’s signature would be submitted to the school. Last month, the FHSAA doubled down by making the menstrual history questions mandatory rather than optional.

More than 30 Florida lawmakers wrote letters to the FHSAA requesting the board reject the requirement that students share their menstrual history, calling it “highly invasive.” In a state where abortion is illegal, companies would be required to turn over personal medical information if subpoenaed for it.