The American Medical Association is catching up to Colorado.

On Tuesday, the venerable physicians group said it would draft and support legislation to ban conversion therapy at the state and national level.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed House Bill 1129 into law in May making it illegal for a licensed mental health counselor to offer the service to a minor, along with House Bill 1139 to make it easier for transgender people to amend their birth certificate.

The mental health practice aims to help those who think they are gay become straight. The AMA says it does more harm than good, triggering depression, post-traumatic stress and suicide.

The AMA’s policy committee, meeting in San Diego on Tuesday, supported banning conversion therapy for minors and adults.

Colorado is one of 18 states and the District of Columbia to ban conversion therapy for people younger than 18. No state bans it for adults.

“It is clear to the AMA that the conversion therapy needs to end in the United States, given the risk of deliberate harm to LGBTQ people,” AMA board member William E. Kobler said in a statement. “Conversion therapy has no foundation as scientifically valid medical care.”

The AMA plans to draft model legislation to offer stands, as well as advocate for federal laws banning conversion therapy.

That was welcome news to former state Rep. Paul Rosenthal, who campaigned for a Colorado ban for years before he lost his 2018 election and the state passed its ban this year.

“Since we don’t see progress at the federal level to ban the harmful practice of conversion therapy, it’s up to states like Colorado to lead the charge,” he said. “Because of the prevalence of social media, children who may be going through it will see that somewhere someone is doing the right thing and getting rid of it, and that may give them hope and an argument to push back. Parents considering sending their child through it may think twice if they see it is illegal in more and more states and discredited by credible organizations such as the AMA.”

“Other states regularly look to Colorado for progressive laws, and I hope that they’ll see that it is possible to pass a bi-partisan conversion therapy ban to protect children, and their constituents will support them doing so.”

Rosenthal and former state Sen. Pat Steadman, both Democrats from metro Denver, tried the first of four attempts, only to see the Republican majority in the state Senate vote it down.

“As a survivor of conversion therapy, I am grateful to the American Medical Association for taking this critical step to help protect young people from this dangerous practice,” said Mathew Shurka, a strategist for the National Center for Lesbian Rights, in a statement. “Today’s announcement sends a powerful message to young people and their families that LGBT youth are born perfect.”

Shannon Minter, NCLR’s legal director, stated, “We applaud the American Medical Association for taking this important step to protect the health and well-being of LGBTQ youth.

“Over the past two decades, every leading medical and mental health professional association has warned the public that attempts to change a young person’s sexual orientation or gender identity are dangerous and put youth at risk of serious harms, including suicide and depression. Today’s announcement is a logical extension of that medical consensus. We hope that state legislators will heed this call and ensure that licensed mental health professionals do not subject minors to this harmful practice.”