The Biden administration announced its opposition to gender-affirming surgery for transgender minors, diverging from its previous broad support for gender-affirming healthcare. A White House spokesperson clarified that while the administration supports gender-affirming care for minors, it believes surgical care should be reserved for adults.
This stance drew criticism from LGBTQ organizations. Kelley Robinson, President of the Human Rights Campaign, stated, “It’s wrong on the science and wrong on the substance.” Allison Scott from the Campaign for Southern Equality called the statement “cowardly” and warned against government interference in private medical decisions.
The controversy follows a New York Times report revealing that Adm. Rachel Levine of the Department of Health and Human Services advised against removing age minimums for gender-affirming care in the World Professional Association for Transgender Health guidelines. Despite these guidelines initially recommending lower age minimums for certain treatments, the final version removed age requirements to reduce barriers to care.
Professional medical organizations argue that maturity and social support are better indicators than age for determining appropriate gender-affirming care. The administration’s current stance marks a shift from its earlier unequivocal support for such healthcare.
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