Inside the Texas Children's Hospital trans care whistleblower case: One year of fallout and unanswered questions

Time of India

20-06-2025

Credit: X/Vanessa Sivadge
It's been exactly one year since nurse Vanessa Sivadge ignited a political and legal firestorm by accusing Texas Children's Hospital—America's largest pediatric care center—of secretly continuing gender transition treatments for minors in violation of state law.
What began as a whistleblower interview has since spiraled into FBI visits, criminal indictments, legislative inquiries, and the quiet departure of a once-revered CEO.
Here's how the case unfolded and what has happened since the revelations came to light.
June 2024: Vanessa Sivadge goes public
On June 23, 2024, the New York Post published an interview with Vanessa Sivadge, 31, a former nurse at Texas Children's Hospital (TCH). In the interview, Sivadge alleged that doctors at TCH continued to perform gender-affirming care on minors despite state law and public assurances that the program had been shut down.
'These doctors are driven by a political agenda, like an ideological agenda,' she told the Post. 'And I truly believe that they think that they're doing the right thing.'
She further alleged that doctors manipulated parents into consenting to medical transition by invoking suicide threats.
'Parents were manipulated by doctors with an ideological agenda to go down this path of medical transition for their child,' she said.
'And I do think that doctors would use manipulative language to suggest that if they didn't do this their child would commit suicide or they would harm themselves.'
According to Sivadge, doctors bypassed Texas' Medicaid restrictions by misdiagnosing minors with hormone deficiencies so that puberty blockers and hormone therapies would be covered.
'There was just no discussion of what are the risks, what are the long-term effects,' she said.
'Many of [the patients] had previous ER visits for attempted suicide, many of them are autistic, many of them are depressed and anxious, and that's really devastating because it's really clear there's something else going on.'
The FBI shows up
Following her public disclosures, Sivadge said she was visited by two FBI agents. Video footage shared by Christopher Rufo on X (formerly Twitter) shows two plainclothes agents at her door.
One agent can be heard saying: 'I'm sure you're aware of some of the things that have been going on at your work lately.'
Sivadge told Rufo, 'They threatened me. They promised they would make life difficult for me if I was trying to protect the leaker. They said I was not safe at work and claimed that someone at my workplace had given my name to the FBI.'
Sivadge's revelations came a year after Dr. Eithan Haim, a surgeon at the hospital, released documents in May 2023 showing that Texas Children's continued providing gender-affirming care after claiming it had ceased operations in March 2022.
Haim was later indicted by the Department of Justice on four federal charges—three of them for HIPAA violations. Haim denied any wrongdoing.
'They wanted to intimidate me into silence using every technique the federal leviathan had at their disposal. But they failed,' Haim said. 'The only way to lose is to submit to corruption. It's time to fight back harder than ever!'
Haim claimed the leaked files did not contain personal health information.
And like Haim, Sivadge also had to pay the price for bringing the truth out in the open. Sivadge in a tweet revealed she had been fired in August 2024, just two months after coming forward. 'I had low expectations when I went public, doubtful and uncertain if anyone would notice or care,' she wrote. 'Imagine my shock when people I had never met overwhelmed my Legal Defense Fund with financial support.'
She added: 'After I was fired in August 2024, these early contributions by generous supporters enabled us to retain [@BurkeLawTweets] as our legal counsel.
They are the most qualified, tenacious group of attorneys I have ever had the privilege of working with.'
However, Sivadge points out that the two journalists she accused,- David Pauls and Dr Richard O Roberts- have since vanished from the scene. Jonathan Choe, a reporter known for investigating gender medicine practices, visited the physicians' listed residences. Despite attempts to make contact, neither doctor was found at home, and no public statement has been issued by them regarding the allegations to date.
Amidst the controversy, the CEO of the Texas hospital, Mark A. Wallace, stepped down after 35 years at the helm. The announcement was delivered without fanfare and did not reference the whistleblower case or ongoing investigations.
Credit: X/Vanessa Sivadge
However, internal memos obtained by reporters showed that Wallace had previously circulated communications stating that the hospital's gender program had been fully shut down following the February 2022 directive from Attorney General Ken Paxton, which categorized gender-affirming care for minors as potential child abuse under Texas law.
Contrary to those assurances, whistleblower claims and leaked documents showed that the program had continued operations in various capacities well into 2023, with medical records indicating the ongoing prescription of puberty blockers and hormones.
The disconnect between internal messaging and actual medical practice is now a focal point in both legal and legislative reviews of the hospital's conduct.
June 2025: One year later, still no closure
The Texas Attorney General's Office, under Ken Paxton, is actively investigating the allegations involving Medicaid fraud and misrepresentation of gender-related diagnoses for billing purposes.
State Rep. Brian Harrison and Sen. Mayes Middleton submitted a joint letter urging Texas Health and Human Services to conduct a full audit of Medicaid/CHIP funds used by Texas Children's Hospital from 2021 onward.
Credit: X/Vanessa Sivadge
In their statement, they wrote: 'There is perhaps no more important responsibility we all share than to be good stewards with tax dollars... If true, not only do the actors involved know they are perpetrating a fraud, but they are doing it to engage in child abuse.'
Meanwhile, federal prosecutors continue their case against Dr. Eithan Haim. He faces four charges—three for alleged HIPAA violations and one for unauthorized access of medical files. Haim maintains that no protected health information was leaked and that his actions were protected whistleblowing under federal law.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has since launched an official investigation into the hospital's use of Medicaid funds and the allegations of child abuse. State Rep. Brian Harrison has called for emergency hearings. Meanwhile, Dr. Eithan Haim's legal case continues, as does fundraising for both whistleblowers' legal defenses.
For her part, Vanessa Sivadge remains defiant and resolute. 'They tried to silence me,' she said. 'But if telling the truth costs me everything, I can live with that.'
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