Updated Dec. 18, 2025, 2:24 p.m. ET
The Trump administration is moving to make it harder for hospitals to provide gender-affirming care for children, to stop medical device manufacturers from marketing breast binders to children, and to stop gender dysphoria from being protected under federal disability law.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a press conference on Thursday, Dec. 18, signed a declaration that says “sex-rejecting procedures are neither safe nor effective treatment for children with gender dysphoria.”
Kennedy said that the Department of Health and Human Services is starting an administrative process to prohibit hospitals that provide children with “sex-rejecting procedures” from participating in Medicare and Medicaid — a move that would affect virtually every hospital in the United States.
Kennedy also said the administration will attempt to stop Medicare from funding “sex-rejecting procedures,” a move that could have ripple effects nationwide because commercial insurance companies generally choose what to reimburse based on Medicare’s policies.
The Food and Drug Administration will also send warning letters to 12 manufacturers of breast binders telling them not to market the devices to children, Kennedy said. He said the devices are designed for women recovering from breast cancer surgery, not for children.
The HHS released a report in May that determined there’s a lack of evidence supporting interventions such as puberty blockers, sex hormones and surgery. The report emphasized their potential risks despite most medical organizations and professionals backing their benefit.
“So-called gender-affirming care has inflicted lasting physical and psychological care on vulnerable young people,” Kennedy said. “This is not medicine. This is malpractice.”
Gender-affirming care is a range of social, psychological, behavioral and medical interventions designed to support a person in affirming their gender identity, according to the World Health Organization.
Letitia James, the Democratic attorney general of New York, issued a statement calling the announcement a “reprehensible” action that would hurt and isolate adolescents.
“This president would rather target young people than lower costs or expand access to health care,” she wrote. “I will use every tool at my disposal to fight this proposal and protect transgender Americans and their families.”
President Donald Trump during the 2024 presidential election made opposition to transgender rights a focus of his campaign.
Contributing:Adrianna Rodriguez
