California AG sues San Diego hospital for ending gender treatment for minors

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a lawsuit against a San Diego hospital over its move to end gender transition treatment for minors to comply with Trump administration demands.

Bonta alleges that Rady Children’s Hospital violated the terms of its merger agreement with Children’s Hospital of Orange County by discontinuing transgender-related treatment for people under 18. According to KCRA3.

The problem began when the federal government threatened to cut funding and shut down the hospital for offering gender transition treatment to children, Rady said.

MAJOR CALIFORNIA HEALTH SYSTEM IS ENDING TRANSGENDER PROCEEDINGS AGAINST UNDERAGE PEOPLE IN ITS NETWORK

According to the report, the hospital agreed to the Trump administration’s demands and announced that its gender transition care center would close, prompting a legal challenge from California.

Bonta’s lawsuit alleges that the hospital violated the terms of the merger agreement, which included a commitment to continue providing gender transition care to minors.

“Recent changes to our gender-affirming care services reflect a very difficult decision,” the hospital said in a statement to KCRA3. he said.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta argues that Rady Children’s Hospital violated the terms of its merger agreement with Children’s Hospital of Orange County. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

“This decision was guided by our responsibilities as a not-for-profit pediatric health system to continue to serve all children and families,” the statement continued.

This comes as the Trump administration continues to target facilities that offer transgender-related treatment to people under 18, following President Donald Trump’s executive order a year ago calling on the Department of Health and Human Services to protect children from “chemical and surgical injuries.”

Last year, California was part of a Democratic-led group of 19 states and Washington, D.C., that filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over a declaration aimed at restricting gender transition therapy for minors.

NEARLY 20 STATES HAVE SUED HHS OVER THE PROVISION TO RESTRICT GENDER TRANSITION TREATMENT FOR MINORS

Rady Children’s Hospital says the federal government is threatening to cut funding and shut down the hospital for offering gender transition treatment to children. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

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In this statement, HHS stated that treatments such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and gender reassignment surgeries are unsafe and ineffective for children experiencing gender dysphoria.

He also warned doctors that they could be excluded from federal healthcare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, if they offered these treatments to minors.