Health officials in the Trump administration announced Thursday two proposed rules that would effectively ban gender-affirming care for transgender young people, even in states where it is legal, such as Maine.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, announced the proposed rules at an event on Thursday, saying gender-affirming care imposes “lasting harm” on children.
“This is not medicine. It is malpractice,” Kennedy said. “We’re done with junk science driven by ideological pursuits, not the well-being of children.”
The rules would prohibit providers and hospitals from receiving Medicaid reimbursements and block all Medicaid and Medicare funding to hospitals that provide this pediatric care.
MaineHealth, one of the largest providers of gender-affirming care in the state, said it would no longer be able to continue to offer it to patients under 19 should these new federal rules go into place.
“We are disappointed that the federal government has taken steps to interfere with our ability to offer evidence-based care to our patients,” said Dr. Andy Mueller, chief executive officer of MaineHealth in a press release.
Maine Family Planning also provides gender-affirming care for youth across the state. Director of Advocacy and Community Engagement Olivia Pennington said the proposed rules would harm providers, at a time when healthcare infrastructure is already strained. She said attempts to ban gender-affirming care is dangerous.
“This is life saving health care, and we are proud to provide it, and we are going to do everything we can to continue providing this care," Pennington said. "And I want to be crystal clear, gender affirming care remains legal and available here in the state of Maine.”
Gender-affirming care refers to a wide range of medical, mental health and social services to support and affirm an individual's gender identity. Medical treatments may include consultations with doctors, therapy, puberty blockers and hormones, and in rare cases, surgeries.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Medical Association, and the World Health Organization all support access to gender-affirming care.
The AAP pushed back strongly against the new proposals, calling them "unprecedented and not grounded in science."
“These rules are a baseless intrusion into the patient-physician relationship,” AAP President Susan J. Kressly said in a statement.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for youth, and more than half of U.S. states now ban it. More than 100,000 transgender minors live in a state with a ban, according to Equality Maine.
Research has shown that puberty blockers significantly reduce depression and risk of suicide in transgender youth.
Andrew Bourassa of Biddeford has a transgender son, now 23, and said their gender-affirming surgery at 19 was lifechanging.
"The day that they had surgery and they came out of surgery, the look on their face and how they carried themselves changed that day," Bourassa said. "I had zero reservations or concerns from that point forward. I knew this was the right thing. They carried themselves lighter. They seemed more confident, more capable."
Bourassa said he is really worried about the messages young transgender people are receiving right now.
"Those messages are really damaging and hurtful," Bourassa said. "It makes me really concerned for not just for the kids themselves, but for their families. They're afraid. They're afraid of what the future looks like in this country as a whole."
EqualityMaine Executive Director Gia Drew said this is yet another attack by the Trump administration targeting transgender people.
"If this actually were to go through, it's a cruel attack to use transgender youth in the healthcare they deserve as a lever to cancel all federal money coming to hospitals and clinics that provide medically sound health care to transgender people," Drew said.
The proposed rules announced Thursday come just a day after the U.S. House of representatives passed legislation that would criminalize doctors who provide gender-affirming care to youth. However, the bill is not expected to pass in the Senate.
MaineHealth said that providers are working with patients and their families to make sure they are prepared for the proposed changes. In addition, they will work closely with families to ensure they have access to available treatment options.
The American Civil Liberties Union has already announced plans to sue to stop the rules and more legal action is expected.
A 60-day public comment period begins Friday.
