MADISON, WI — The Transgender Parent and Nonbinary Advocacy Caucus strongly condemns the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ proposed rules and the two U.S. House legislative bills that would severely ban access to medically necessary, evidence-based health care, for transgender and nonbinary minors. These proposals build on harmful policies advanced during the Trump administration and represent a dangerous step backward for families, patients, and providers.
“These proposed rules put politics ahead of science and ideology ahead of families,” stated the Transgender Parent and Nonbinary Advocacy Caucus. “They threaten to override the judgment of parents, patients, and qualified medical professionals, replacing it with a “one size fits all” federal government mandate that will cause real harm.”
Major medical organizations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and the Endocrine Society recognize gender-affirming care as evidence-based and, in many cases, lifesaving. Restricting access to this care increases the risk of depression, anxiety, and suicide among transgender and nonbinary youth, who already face disproportionate mental health challenges due to stigma and discrimination.
The caucus also expressed deep concern about the chilling effect these proposals would have on health care providers, many of whom could be pressured to deny care or abandon patients out of fear of penalties or legal uncertainty.
“Our message is simple,” the caucus concluded. “Trans kids belong. Trans families belong. And health care decisions belong with patients, families, and doctors not politicians.”
