Latest news with #PFLAGNational
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Judge blocks Trump order threatening funding for institutions that provide gender-affirming care for minors
A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction Tuesday blocking enforcement of the Trump administration's executive order threatening federal funding for institutions that provide gender-affirming care for anyone under 19. U.S. District Judge Brendan Hurson of Maryland ordered the defendants to file a status report with the court by March 11 detailing their compliance with the court's order. The American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and other groups filed the lawsuit in February on behalf of multiple families and youths who are members of PFLAG National, a nonprofit group supporting the friends and families of LGBTQ people. They alleged that President Donald Trump's order disrupted their care. The executive order blocked hospitals and clinics that receive federal funding from providing gender-affirming care to those under age 19. The judge paused the administration's order last month, prompting many providers who had suspended care to resume it under the court's temporary restraining order. Hurson wrote in Tuesday's order that the plaintiffs had demonstrated that the hardships they were suffering were the result of discontinuation of what medical professionals had deemed to be "essential care." The hardships, he added, were "potentially catastrophic." "Specifically," Hurson wrote, "the sudden denial or interruption of Plaintiffs' medical care has caused or is expected to soon cause unwanted physical changes, depression, increased anxiety, heightened gender dysphoria, severe distress, risk of suicide, uncertainty about how to obtain medical care, impediments to maintaining a social life, and fear of discrimination, including hate crimes." In court filings, the Trump administration opposed the plaintiffs' request for relief, saying their 'arguments concern hypothetical downstream action that may or may not result from' the executive order. The administration added that the 'plaintiffs here may be incidentally harmed depending on how those institutions react.' Hurson's preliminary injunction will remain in effect until the court decides on the merits of the case. Joshua Block, senior staff attorney for the ACLU's LGBTQ & HIV Project, applauded the judge's decision and criticized Trump's executive order. 'This order from President Trump is a direct effort to threaten the well-being of transgender people while denying them equal protection under the law, enacted by coercing doctors to follow Trump's own ideology rather than their best medical judgment," Block said in a statement. This article was originally published on
NBC News
05-03-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Judge blocks Trump order threatening funding for institutions that provide gender-affirming care for youths
A federal judge on Tuesday issued a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the Trump administration's executive order threatening federal funding for institutions that provide gender-affirming care for anyone under 19. U.S. District Judge Brendan Hurson of Maryland ordered the defendants to file a status report with the court by March 11, detailing their compliance with the court's order. The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Lambda Legal and other groups in February on behalf of multiple families and youths who are members of PFLAG National, a nonprofit supporting the friends and families of LGBTQ people. They alleged that their care was disrupted by President Donald Trump's order. The executive order blocked hospitals and clinics that receive federal funding from providing gender-affirming care to those under the age of 19. The judge previously paused the administration's order in February, prompting many providers who had suspended care to resume under the court's temporary restraining order. Hurson wrote in Tuesday's order that the plaintiffs had demonstrated that the hardships they were suffering were the result of the discontinuation of what medical professionals had deemed to be "essential care." The hardships, Hurson added, were "potentially catastrophic." "Specifically," Hurson wrote, "the sudden denial or interruption of Plaintiffs' medical care has caused or is expected to soon cause unwanted physical changes, depression, increased anxiety, heightened gender dysphoria, severe distress, risk of suicide, uncertainty about how to obtain medical care, impediments to maintaining a social life, and fear of discrimination, including hate crimes." In court filings, the Trump administration opposed the plaintiffs' request for relief, saying their 'arguments concern hypothetical downstream action that may or may not result from' the executive order. The administration added that the 'plaintiffs here may be incidentally harmed depending on how those institutions react.' Hurson's preliminary injunction will remain in place until the court decides on the merits of the case. Joshua Block, senior staff attorney for the ACLU's LGBTQ & HIV Project, applauded the judge's decision and criticized Trump's executive order. 'This order from President Trump is a direct effort to threaten the well-being of transgender people while denying them equal protection under the law, enacted by coercing doctors to follow Trump's own ideology rather than their best medical judgment," Block said in a statement.
CBS News
05-02-2025
- Health
- CBS News
Maryland will still protect access to gender-affirming care after Trump executive order, attorney general says
BALTIMORE -- Maryland will continue protecting access to gender-affirming care despite the Trump administration's recent executive order stating that the United States would not support certain healthcare procedures. In a letter from 15 attorneys general, including Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, the states reaffirmed their intentions. President Trump's executive order On January 28, President Trump issued an executive order, titled Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation, which restricted federal support for certain medical procedures for minors. "It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called 'transition' of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures," the order reads. It also instructs the Department of Justice to "prioritize enforcement of protections against female genital mutilation." According to Maryland's attorney general, the Trump administration's order falsely implies that gender-affirming healthcare procedures and treatments are unlawful. "The Trump Administration's recent Executive Order is wrong on the science and the law. Despite what the Trump Administration has suggested, there is no connection between 'female genital mutilation' and gender-affirming care, and no federal law makes gender-affirming care unlawful. President Trump cannot change that by Executive Order," Brown wrote in a statement. Gender-affirming care in Maryland In Maryland, there are no defined age limits for gender-affirming care, though parental consent is required for minors. In March 2024, the Maryland Senate passed a measure that added gender-affirming treatments, including medications, and supplies, to the definition of "legally protected health care." The bill outlines a list of protected gender-affirming procedures, including hormone therapy, hormone and puberty blocks, and hair alterations. On Jan. 1, 2024, Maryland's Trans Health Equity Act went into effect, which expanded gender-affirming treatments covered by the state's Medicaid program. On Tuesday, a group of transgender minors and their families sued the Trump administration over his executive action on gender-affirming care. The lawsuit was filed in federal district court in Maryland on behalf of two 12-year-olds who identify as transgender, five transgender teenagers who were diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and LGBTQ advocacy groups PFLAG National and GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+. It accuses Mr. Trump and his administration of discrimination based on sex and transgender status.
