FTC probes trans care claims and risks
Why it matters: The action could help make the case for using unfair competition laws to crack down on health providers, by asserting gender-affirming care involves deceptive claims, legal analysts say.
Driving the news: The FTC solicited public comment through Sept. 26 from consumers who "may have been exposed to false or unsupported claims about 'gender-affirming care,' especially as it relates to minors."
The move followed a public workshop the FTC held in early July to "gauge the harms consumers may be experiencing" surrounding gender-affirming care for minors that featured prominent critics of youth gender-affirming care.
The agency justified its involvement by saying its role is to assess whether medical professionals have violated parts of the FTC Act by failing to disclose risks connected with gender-affirming care or making false or unsubstantiated claims about its benefits or effectiveness.
Reality check: Gender-affirming care for minors is supported by major medical organizations including the American Medical Association.
Drugs like puberty blockers and hormone therapy are prescribed based on individuals' needs and surgeries for minors are rare. Most people who accessed transition-related care as adolescents are happy with that decision as adults, research shows.
Zoom out: The Trump administration has used threats of federal funding cutoffs and law enforcement against providers of gender-affirming care, especially to minors.
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Controversial vaccine official Dr. Vinay Prasad departs FDA
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FDA vaccine chief leaving agency after less than 3 months
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The states acknowledged that development in their Tuesday statement but said they 'remain committed to ensuring full relief.' Some Planned Parenthood clinics lost their Medicaid funding last week after a temporary restraining order expired on July 21, the same day Talwani granted a partial injunction that applied only to the few affiliates that wouldn't be subjected to the defunding provision because they don't provide abortions. At the White House PATIENT DATA PLEDGES — The White House and CMS are expected to announce today that roughly 60 entities in the health care sector will pledge to make patient data more accessible and speed its delivery among patients, clinicians and payers, according to an HHS employee granted anonymity to discuss the sensitive plans, POLITICO's Ruth Reader reports. 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Names in the News Andi Lipstein Fristedt is now executive vice president, chief strategy and policy officer at the Parkinson's Foundation. She previously was deputy director and chief strategy officer at the CDC. WHAT WE'RE READING STAT's Chelsea Cirruzzo reports that HHS is vetting potential new members for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, the federal advisory panel that recommends which preventive services insurers must cover.
