In a significant move, President Donald Trump has issued an executive order on Tuesday that seeks to eliminate federal funding for gender transition procedures for individuals under 19 years of age. This action represents his latest effort to reverse protective measures put in place for transgender individuals throughout the nation.
The executive order states, “It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures.” The directive mandates that federally managed insurance programs, including TRICARE for military families and Medicaid, will not cover gender transition healthcare. It also calls for the Department of Justice to actively pursue legal means to challenge this practice.
Currently, some state Medicaid programs offer coverage for gender-affirming medical services. The newly issued order indicates that such practices could be curtailed, particularly targeting hospitals and universities that are recipients of federal funds and provide these services.
The language used in the executive order is especially inflammatory, incorporating terms like “mutilation,” “sterilizing,” and “maiming.” This is at odds with established practices of gender-affirming care in the U.S. Additionally, the order dismisses the professional guidance from organizations like the World Professional Association for Transgender Health as “junk science.” On his social media platform, Trump has referred to gender-affirming medical care as “barbaric medical procedures.”
Major medical organizations, including the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, advocate for accessible gender-affirming care. Typically, young people who identify as a gender different from what they were assigned at birth undergo a professional evaluation. They may initially try social transitions—like changing their hairstyles or pronouns—before considering puberty blockers or hormone treatments. Surgical interventions for minors remain exceedingly rare.
Kelley Robinson, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, expressed concern about the political manipulation of the lives of transgender youth, emphasizing the importance of allowing families and healthcare providers the freedom to make essential healthcare choices.
The executive order encourages Congress to draft laws that would allow those receiving gender-affirming care, and possibly their parents, to initiate lawsuits against healthcare providers if they later regret those medical decisions.
Moreover, the order instructs the Justice Department to prioritize investigations into states that safeguard access to gender-affirming care and to take assertive action against parents who oppose such treatments for their children. A number of states with Democratic leadership have enacted laws to protect healthcare professionals who provide care to minors traveling from areas that prohibit such medical services.
Lambda Legal announced their intent to act quickly in response to the order. Michel Lee Garrett, a trans woman, noted that such policies are designed to erase trans identities from public consciousness, although she believes they will fail. Her child, who identifies partially as a girl and uses they/them pronouns, has yet to opt for medical transition. Nevertheless, Garrett remains unwavering in her commitment to advocate for her child’s future options.
For Howl Hall, an 18-year-old freshman, taking testosterone has not only transformed his physical appearance but significantly improved his mental health by alleviating depression. With this treatment now at risk, Hall expressed concern that discontinuing testosterone would negatively impact his well-being, stating that he would lack fulfillment in life and struggle academically without it.
This latest action is part of Trump’s broader agenda to undo the policies of the Biden administration that safeguard transgender rights. Just a day earlier, Trump ordered the Pentagon to reassess policies that could lead to the exclusion of transgender individuals from military service—a matter that has already prompted legal challenges from active-duty members.
Shortly after taking office, Trump signed another executive order that seeks to redefine gender strictly as male or female, ignoring transgender, nonbinary, or intersex identities. As a result, the State Department has ceased issuing passports with the “X” gender marker, compelling transgender individuals to apply using documents that do not align with their true identities.
Although Trump vowed during his campaign to tackle these issues, his proposed measures are poised to be divisive. Polls conducted during the November elections revealed that slightly more voters disapproved of laws prohibiting gender-affirming medical treatment for minors, although a significant portion of Trump supporters endorsed such bans.
Harper Seldin, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, remarked that the executive order, along with others from the past week, appears aimed at excluding transgender individuals from all aspects of civic life. The ACLU is currently assessing the immediate implications and potential regulatory processes needed in response to the order.
In recent years, transgender individuals have increasingly become targets for social conservatives, leading at least 26 states to enact laws limiting or banning gender-affirming medical care for minors. Many of these states are now facing legal challenges, including a key case against Tennessee’s ban, which is awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.
Republican-led states have also pushed measures to restrict transgender women and girls from participating in sports designed for females and have sought to regulate which restrooms transgender individuals can use, particularly within educational institutions.
As Shelby Chestnut, executive director of the Transgender Law Center, pointed out, the current policies do not benefit anyone and instead foster confusion and fear amongst the population.
