The Supreme Court suggests that state bans on conversion therapy might be unconstitutional.

Regardless of whether state bans are constitutional, conversion therapy is harmful.

Mental health professionals' ethical duties to clients include doing no harm.

Even if conversion therapy is found to be legally permissible, it is unethical.

On March 31, 2026, the Supreme Court of the United States held that Colorado’s statutory ban on conversion therapy was “likely unconstitutional” (Chiles v. Salazar, 2026). Conversion therapy refers to interventions intended to change or suppress an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, typically by promoting heterosexuality or cisgender identity and associated behaviors as the desired outcome. Major professional organizations, including the National Association of Social Workers, the American Psychological Association, and the American Psychiatric Association, have issued policy statements rejecting conversion therapy, citing evidence that it is not only ineffective, but also associated with significant risks, including increased anxiety, distress, depression, and suicide risk (ACA, n.d.; APA, 2026; NASW, 2026). Colorado enacted its ban to protect LGBTQ individuals from these harms. Although the Court’s decision suggests that such bans may be constitutionally vulnerable, the practice of conversion therapy remains inconsistent with core professional ethical principles, including integrity, respect for the dignity and worth of all persons, fidelity (serving clients’ best interests), and nonmaleficence (the obligation to avoid causing harm) (ACA, 2014; APA, 2017; Barsky, 2023; NASW, 2021).

Conflicting Reasoning

The basic premise of the majority’s ruling in Chiles v. Salazar is that conducting conversion therapy is a form of speech protected by the U.S. Constitution. The majority concluded that the Colorado ban on conversion therapy “likely violated” the freedom of expression of licensed healthcare professionals because it imposed a particular viewpoint on them.

The majority did not make a definitive decision........

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