The department began opening investigations into families days later, but Laird told NBC News in March that she didn’t have plans to move.
The family’s story reveals part of the impact Abbott’s directive is having on the families of trans youths in Texas.
They left out of fear that Noah would lose the care recommended by his medical team, but also because the state was becoming increasingly hostile for trans people, Laird said.
He added that Laird and Noah are far from the only ones who have left the state — he knows of several.
At least three other families with trans kids have also said in interviews that they have moved.