The Biden administration announced that it is supporting children and adolescents who seek "gender-affirming care," or simply sex-change treatments.
In celebration of Transgender Day of Visibility on Thursday, the Biden administration declared its support for "gender-affirming care" for children and adolescents. As part of the move, the Office of Population Affairs released a slew of documents, with one titled "Gender Affirming Care and Young People."
The OPA document defined "gender-affirming care" as "a supportive form of healthcare" that includes "medical, surgical, mental health, and non-medical services for transgender and nonbinary people." The document argues that such care is important for transgender and nonbinary chidlren and adolescents as it is "crucial to overall health and well-being." They added that it is important for children or adolescents to "focus on social transitions and can increase their confidence" as they navigate the U.S. healthcare system.
Furthermore, the OPA described "gender-affirming care" as one that has been "shown to increase positive outcomes for transgender and nonbinary children and adolescents." It is also described as "patient-centered" and "treats individuals holistically, aligning their outward, physical traits with their gender identity."
Listed among the types of "gender-affirming care" that the U.S. healthcare system can offer are "social affirmation," which allows trans kids to adopt gender-affirming hairstyles, clothing, name, gender pronouns, restrooms, and more. Meanwhile, puberty blockers and hormone therapy are labeled as "reversible" and "partially reversible," respectively. Finally, gender-affirming surgeries such as "top" surgery, which either reduces breasts or enhances breasts, and "bottom" surgery, which is surgery performed on genitals or reproductive organs, are labeled to be "used in adulthood or case-by-case in adolescence" and "not reversible."
The Christian Headlines reported that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's National Child Traumatic Stress Network also declared their support for "gender-affirming care" through the release of a document titled "Gender-Affirming Care Is Trauma-Informed Care."
According to the document, the National Child Traumatic Stress Network describes "gender-affirming care" as "trauma-informed care." It also argues that providing such care, which involves prescribing puberty blockers and gender-affirming hormones, "is neither child maltreatment nor malpractice."
The document reported the absence of "scientifically sound research" that showed "negative impacts from providing gender-affirming care." Instead, it argued that transgender kids can "thrive when they are supported and affirmed in their identities and their identity development."
The Biden administration's support for "gender-affirming care" for trans children and adolescents comes after Attorney General Ken Paxton published an opinion in February saying "there is no doubt that [gender-affirming] procedures are 'abuse' under Texas law, and thus must be halted," ABC News reported.
Despite this, however, a Texas appeals court in March once again blocked the state from investigating gender-affirming care for trans children as child abuse, saying it would block such investigations to "prevent irreparable harm" to trans children and their families. According to the report, at least nine families were being investigated by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in March.
District Judge Amy Clark Meachum on March 11 issued the first temporary statewide injunction on the investigations after hearing that the parents of a 16 year old transgender girl was being investigated by the agency. Several activist groups, medical organizations, and companies have also expressed their opposition to the discriminatory Texas directive.
