When Politics Meets Medicine: The Battle Over Gender-Affirming Care Heats Up

In a sweeping move on December 18, 2025, the Trump administration unveiled a series of proposed rules that would effectively ban Medicaid and CHIP from covering gender-affirming care, while also barring hospitals that provide such services from participating in Medicare or Medicaid funding. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared that sex-rejecting procedures are neither safe nor effective for children with gender dysphoria, reinforcing the administration's stance against gender-affirming treatments for minors.

 

Key highlights from the announcement include

These changes are part of a broader campaign to roll back access to gender-affirming care, which critics argue will harm the mental and physical health of transgender people, especially youth. Medical organizations, including the American Medical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics, have consistently affirmed the necessity and effectiveness of such care, citing peer-reviewed research that shows improved outcomes for those who receive it

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, FDA, Washington Post, NPR