HHS rejects HRC's claims as hospitals halt sex-change procedures for minors

Six hospital systems¹ have agreed to stop providing sex-change procedures to minors¹, and when the Human Rights Campaign condemned them, the Department of Health and Human Services rejected the Human Rights Campaign’s criticism, saying protections for children are not discrimination and claims linking them to violence are unfounded¹.

HRC says parents’ options for obtaining care for their children are dwindling². Family Brief holds that parents have the right, and good reason, to resist puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for their children.

The dispute behind the agreements

The Human Rights Campaign called the hospital decisions “a crisis for families and transgender youth.” The group’s own release complained that many of the hospitals are located in states that explicitly protect transgender people².

HHS said the procedures carry physical and mental health risks, including lifelong consequences, and argued that the violence claims distract from those risks³.

The agreements themselves are specific. Texas Children’s Hospital committed not to perform the procedures on children, including puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones⁴. NYU Langone and UPMC agreed to stop providing puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgery to minors, with NYU paying $8.5 million and UPMC $950,000.

The systems are Texas Children’s Hospital, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Connecticut Children’s Hospital, Mount Sinai Health System, NYU Langone Hospitals and UPMC³.

Federal investigations continue

The six agreements came out of a nationwide federal investigation, and it is not finished. The investigation examines potential violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the False Claims Act, including the use of false diagnosis codes to obtain payment from federal health care programs and private insurers⁵. The Justice Department said its investigations into other providers are ongoing⁵.

Sources

1. HHS Slams HRC's 'Unfounded' Claims About Trans Medicine
2. HRC on Wave of Hospital Settlements with Trump Admin: “Nothing less than a crisis for families and transgender youth”
3. HHS Rejects Human Rights Campaign’s ‘Unfounded’ Claims About Harm From Ending Trans Procedures
4. Justice Department Secures Landmark Resolution to End Pediatric “Gender-Affirming Care” and Create Detransition Clinic
5. DOJ Secures Agreements with NYU and UPMC to End Pediatric “Gender-Affirming Care”