Attorney General James Condemns Trump Administration Proposal Attacking Access to Gender-Affirming Care

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James today released the following statement after the Trump administration released a proposal to dramatically restrict access to gender-affirming care by eliminating federal reimbursement for youth gender-affirming care services and blocking all Medicaid and Medicare funding to hospitals offering pediatric gender-affirming care:

“This president would rather target young people than lower costs or expand access to health care. It is reprehensible that our federal government is intent on hurting and isolating the adolescents it is supposed to protect. I will use every tool at my disposal to fight this proposal and protect transgender Americans and their families.”

Attorney General James has been a nationwide leader in fighting to protect the LGBTQ+ community against threats from the federal government. In August, Attorney General James led a coalition of 15 other states and the District of Columbia in suing the Trump administration for attacking access to gender-affirming health care for transgender and nonbinary youth. Attorney General James also joined a multistate coalition of attorneys general in two amicus briefs opposing the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) subpoena for patient records related to gender-affirming care at Boston Children’s Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. In February, Attorney General James sent a letter to New York providers warning them that withholding medically necessary health care from transgender patients based on their protected status likely violates New York’s anti-discrimination laws.

For more information on gender-affirming care protections in New York, visit the Office of the Attorney General’s website.