Trump’s order on the attention affirmed by gender increases the reversal of trans rights

President Donald Trump increased the reversal of his transgender rights administration on Tuesday with An executive order This seeks to intervene in parents’ medical decisions by prohibiting insurance coverage financed by the puberty or surgery blockers for people under 19.

Trump’s order, entitled “Protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation”, will surely face legal challenges and would require regulatory or regulatory actions to be completely enacted. But transgender people and their defenders are concerned that it will discourage the recipes and medical procedures that consider saving lives in some cases, while complicating the insurance coverage for the care that gender affirms.

“It cannot be underestimated how harmful this executive order is, although it does nothing on its own,” said Andrew Ortiz, a senior policy lawyer in the Transgender Law Center. “It shows where the administration wants to go, where the agencies want their efforts and energies.”

The order is one of several that Trump has issued, less than two weeks since he assumed the position, which are addressed to the trans community. He has ordered his administration to recognize only the male and female sex, and that he abandons the term “gender” completely. Ordered the State Department To broadcast passports Identify Americans only by their genres assigned to birth. Has encouraged the Department of Justice to Process teachers and other school officials who help trans children to the transition, even through the use of their favorite names. And signed an order that is expected to lead to transgender people being prohibited from military service.

“We are terrified. We cry every day. Wounding my family and my son is winning politics for Republicans at this time, ”said the father of a transgender child who lives in Missouri and asked not to be identified by fear of being attacked. “Every bone in my body tells me that I can no longer keep my son safe from my government, I can’t keep my family safe.”

Around 300,000 American children from 13 to 17 years identify As a transgender, according to the Williams Institute of the UCLA Law Faculty, which investigates sexual orientation and the gender identity law and public policies. But it is believed that the number that seeks the attention that gender affirms is much less. An exam by Reuters and Komodo Health of approximately 330 million health insurance claims presented from 2017 to 2021 discovered that less than 15,000 patients The ages of 6 to 17 years with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria had received the hormonal therapy that affirms the gender and less than 5,000 had begun puberty blocking medications, although the annual number of patients of these more patients who doubled during the five years.

The Trump order that seeks to interrupt the insurance coverage for young people, the Williams Institute said in a brief“At least at least it will limit the availability of the attention that gender states or make it more difficult to access in the short term and could increase the risk for both suppliers and for the recipients of attention.”

Much of what the order requests would require changes in the rules or another federal guide, which can take weeks or months. Although it is mainly directed to government health insurance programs, the order could also have implications of the private sector, and it is likely that in front of the states or defense organizations.

Specifically, the directive intends to limit insurance coverage for hormonal or surgical treatments that help young people to the transition.

He directs the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to “take all appropriate measures” to finish the insurance coverage of such treatments. Specifically names several government programs such as Tricare, which serves the military and their dependents; Medicare and Medicaid; Federal and postal health benefits programs; and the External Service Benefits Plan.

“The objective here is clearly aimed at the plans financed by the federal government, such as Medicare and Medicaid, but there is a lack of clarity about whether it would affect other plans, such as exchange plans, where essential health benefits are required,” he said Lindsey Dawson, director of LGBTQ Health Policy in KFF, the health policy research, surveys and news organization that includes KFF Health News.

The state programs of Medicaid vary widely in their rules on transgender attention, with a variety of limits or restrictions on what types of attention can be covered for minors in just over half of the states, According to a map Provided by the Colorado -based movement advance project, a group of non -profit experts.

While it is likely to occur little immediately from the order, one of the more than 100 issued by the President since its inauguration last week, however, to have a chilling effect on medical professionals.

The order orders the Department of Justice to work with Congress to promote legislation that allows children and parents a “right of private action”, the ability to file a lawsuit, against medical professionals who provide transgender attention.

And the Department of Justice was also ordered to consider the application of existing laws to those who provide or promote access to gender attention.

In addition, a section of the order orders to the agencies that “take the appropriate measures to ensure that institutions that receive federal subsidies or education subsidies end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children”, a measure that could affect hospitals or Medicine schools.

Julian Polaris, A partner of the Manatt consulting firmThe order said “shows the disposition of the federal government to use federal programs to restrict access to disadvantaged services even to suppliers and patients outside those federal programs.”

The movement caused immediate criticisms of groups that support the rights of people LBGTQ+.

“It is inconceivable that less than 24 hours after trying to bring Head Start programs and school meals for children, President Trump issued an order demonizing young transgender and disseminating dangerous lies about the attention affirmed by gender.” Alexis McGill JohnsonPresident and CEO of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, wrote in a press release.

Because it defines the “young people” such as those under 19, the order would apply the directives to the medical treatments provided to the 18 -year -old, who otherwise are considered adults to make legal decisions, vote or serve in the army.

“There is also a problem with not seeing young people as able to make decisions about their health and their future, and it is obviously worrying and trying to move it and take more control over more people,” Ortiz said. “But having the hard line at 18 does not do better.”

Ortiz said the order contains erroneous information about medical care for young people who are making the transition and addresses a small subset of US residents: transgender young people in families who can access and pay the attention that gender affirms.

“That should be worrying for everyone,” he said, “that they are taking populations to aim, to say that” we do not believe that they deserve access to medical care of best practices. “

Trump’s order explained that the action was necessary because this medical treatment could make young people regret breastfeeding “.

The KFF Health News correspondent, Bram Sable-Smith, contributed to this report.

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This article First appeared in Kff Health News and is published here under a Creative Commons license.