Letitia James orders hospital to resume gender transition treatments for minors

New York Attorney General Letitia James is ordering a Manhattan hospital to continue offering gender transition treatment to transgender youth after the Trump administration ended such treatments last month due to funding threats.

James wrote in his Feb. 25 letter, made public for the first time this week, that NYU Langone’s decision to close the Transgender Youth Health Program violated the state’s anti-discrimination laws by “jeopardizing access to medically necessary health care for some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers.”

James’ office threatened “further action” if the hospital did not immediately resume offering hormone treatments, puberty blockers and other treatments for transgender youth.

NYU Langone, one of the city’s largest hospital systems, said last month it would stop providing some gender transition treatments to patients under 19.

“Given the recent departure of our medical director and the current regulatory environment, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue our Transgender Youth Health Program,” NYU Langone spokesman Steve Ritea said in a statement at the time. “We are committed to helping patients in our care manage this change. This does not impact our ongoing pediatric mental health care programs.”

The hospital stopped admitting new patients to its transgender youth program last year after President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation” aimed at restricting gender reassignment treatment for people under 19.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced a proposal to cut federal Medicaid and Medicare funding to hospitals that provide these treatments to transgender youth. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Citing Trump’s order, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services later announced a proposal to cut federal Medicaid and Medicare funding to hospitals that provide these treatments to transgender youth.

But the Feb. 25 letter, signed by Darsana Srinivasan, chief of the attorney general’s medical bureau, says the proposal does not formally change federal law and does not affect “the existing duties and obligations of a medical institution under New York law.”

“Sudden discontinuation of medically necessary transgender health services can lead to serious, adverse health consequences,” Srinivasan wrote. “Accordingly, the Attorney General is extremely concerned about your agency’s decision to cease providing care to this vulnerable minority population.”

LETITIA JAMES SUES HHS FOR TYPING FEDERAL FUNDS TO TRANSGENDER POLICY

NYU Langone announced last month that it would stop providing some gender transition treatments to patients under 19. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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The letter gives the hospital until March 11 to demonstrate its compliance, but it is unclear what steps will be taken if treatments cannot continue.

Many other hospitals across the country also halted treatment of transgender youth following Trump’s executive order and funding threats.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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