Children's Hospital plans to restart gender-affirming care as Colorado joins lawsuit against executive order
DENVER (KDVR) — Weeks after Denver Health announced it was pausing gender-affirming care to LGBTQIA people under 19 years old, citing the potential to lose its federal funding, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser announced the state is joining a lawsuit aimed at invalidating the executive order that threatened such funding.
The executive order issued by President Donald Trump, signed Jan. 28, is part of a push to reverse Biden administration policies meant to protect transgender people and their care. It ordered agencies to take steps to make sure that hospitals receiving federal research and education grants 'end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children.'
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The order was temporarily blocked on Feb. 14 by a federal judge, who said the executive order 'blatantly discriminated against trans youth.'
'The White House executive order is not only illegal, but also cruel,' Weiser said in a release on Wednesday. 'I've met with health care providers and parents, and they fear that if the executive order is allowed to stand, it will result in irreversible physical and mental health harms for transgender youth.
'Parents, in consultation with trusted medical providers, know what is best for their child and should have the option to seek the care their child needs to live their best lives,' Weiser continued. 'Gender-affirming care is legally protected health care in Colorado, and with this lawsuit Colorado hospitals will again be free to provide critical care.'
Weiser said that it's not just Denver Health that paused gender-affirming care: The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus stopped providing puberty-delaying medications and hormone therapy to patients who had been evaluated but had not yet started those therapies.
'Denying access to medical care that is known to be safe and effective threatens the ability of transgender youth to thrive socially and academically,' Weiser argued in his office's release. 'Their marginalization will exacerbate dysphoria, mood symptoms, and ultimately may cause some previously stable transgender youth to attempt suicide, according to medical professionals.'
On Thursday, Children's Hospital Colorado, which is housed on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, said it was aware of the state joining the federal lawsuit filed by the state of Washington.
'Children's Hospital Colorado believes that families know what is best for their child,' the hospital told FOX31 on Thursday. 'Every family should have the right to access expert medical care to support their child's well-being, including gender-diverse youth. Because of the executive order issued on Jan. 28, we were forced to modify our model of gender-affirming medical care for patients under 19 years of age.'
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The hospital noted that the temporary restraining order was provided to the states that had been involved in the case at the time — Washington, Oregon and Minnesota.
'When the court extends the temporary restraining order to Colorado, Children's Hospital Colorado will plan to resume gender-affirming medical care, including puberty-blocking and hormone-based care on Feb. 24,' Children's Hospital Colorado told FOX31. 'We are in the process of notifying affected families who depend on us for care.'
The hospital added that it continues to assess the rapidly changing legal and medical landscapes of the U.S., and will provide the highest-quality specialty pediatric care 'within the scope of the law.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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