Trump admin sued by 19 states over declaration to restrict gender transition care
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A Democratic-led group of 19 states and Washington, D.C., has sued the Trump administration over a declaration aimed at restricting gender transition treatment of minors.
Lawsuit filed against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; his secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; and the inspector general’s declaration comes after last week’s declaration that treatments such as puberty blockers, hormone therapy and gender surgeries are unsafe and ineffective for children experiencing gender dysphoria.
The declaration also warned doctors that they could be excluded from federal healthcare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, if they offered these treatments to minors.
The move is intended to build on President Donald Trump’s January executive order calling on HHS to protect children from “chemical and surgical injuries.”
HHS BRINGS A PUBLIC CLAIM TO ‘GENDER REJECTION PROCEDURES’ IN CHILDREN, THREATENING HOSPITAL AND MEDICAID FUNDING
The lawsuit was filed against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; his secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.; and inspector general. (Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters)
“We are taking six decisive actions to protect children from chemical and surgical injuries, guided by gold standard science and President Trump’s week one executive order,” Kennedy said at a news conference last week.
HHS also proposed new rules designed to further inhibit gender transition treatment for minors; but the lawsuit does not address rules that have not yet been finalized.
The states’ lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Eugene, Oregon, argues that the declaration is false and unlawful and urges the court to block its implementation.
“Secretary Kennedy cannot unilaterally change medical standards by posting a document online, and no one should lose access to medically necessary health care because the federal government seeks to interfere with the decisions of doctors’ offices,” New York Attorney General Letitia James, who is prosecuting the case, said in a statement. he said.
The lawsuit alleges that the statement attempts to pressure providers to end gender transition treatment for teens and circumvent legal requirements for policy changes. Federal law requires the public to be notified and given an opportunity to comment before a fundamental change in health policy is made, and neither was done before the statement was issued, the complaint said.
HHS’s move is intended to build on President Donald Trump’s January executive order calling on HHS to protect children from “chemical and surgical injuries.” (Tom Brenner of The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The declaration based its conclusions on a peer-reviewed report the ministry conducted earlier this year that called for greater reliance on behavioral therapy rather than broad gender transition treatment for minors with gender dysphoria.
The report raised questions about standards published by the World Association of Transgender Health Professionals for the treatment of transgender children and raised concerns that young people may be too young to consent to life-changing treatments that could lead to future infertility.
Leading medical groups and doctors who treat transgender children criticized the report, saying it was flawed.
HHS also announced two proposed federal rules last week; one is to cut off federal Medicaid and Medicare funding from hospitals that offer gender transition treatments to children, and the other is to prevent federal Medicaid money from being used for these procedures.
HOUSE APPROVES MTG-SPONSORED LEGISLATION TO CRIMINALIZE GENDER TRANSITION THERAPY FOR MINORS
New York Attorney General Letitia James led the lawsuit against the Trump administration. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
The proposals have not yet been finalized and are not legally binding because they must go through a lengthy rulemaking process and public comment before being implemented.
Since Trump returned to office, many major health care providers have already pulled gender transition treatment for teenagers, even in Democratic-led states where the procedures are legal under state law.
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Health benefits programs in slightly less than half of the states currently cover gender transition treatment. At least 27 states have passed laws restricting or banning the treatment, and the Supreme Court’s decision this year upholding Tennessee’s ban likely means other state laws will remain in effect.
Democratic attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, Washington state and Washington D.C. and Pennsylvania’s Democratic governor joined James in the lawsuit.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
