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National Post
3 days ago
- Health
- National Post
Mia Hughes: Canadian Medical Association wants to force Alberta to ignore science on gender care
Article content The entire field is built upon research out of the Netherlands that has been shown to be methodologically flawed, and the diagnosis of gender dysphoria is shaped by political lobbying intended to reduce stigma and distress. Article content What's more, the Canadian Pediatric Society bases its recommendations on the field's standards of care which are set by the discredited World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). In a recently withdrawn legal challenge to Alabama's youth gender medicine ban, WPATH was forced to disclose over two million internal emails that revealed the organization blocked independent systematic reviews that showed low-quality evidence, consulted 'social justice lawyers' when drafting its medical guidelines, and, at the Biden administration's request, removed almost all lower age limits from its adolescent chapter to avoid undermining state-level legal battles. Article content Reimer also stated, without irony, that medical decisions should be based on 'the best science.' Yet the best science — specifically the systematic reviews from Sweden, Finland, England, and a team of researchers in Canada — has all concluded the evidence base for paediatric medical transition is of very low certainty. Alberta's Bill 26 reflects that consensus. The CMA's position contradicts it. Article content This isn't the first legal challenge to Alberta's legislation. Late last year, Egale Canada — originally a gay rights charity that expanded into trans advocacy in the early 2000s — teamed up with the Skipping Stone Foundation and five families to contest the law. That move is surprising given early research conducted by leading figures in gender medicine, Psychologist/Sexologist Kenneth Zucker and Psychiatrist Susan Bradley, found that most children with early-onset gender dysphoria would grow up to be gay or lesbian if left untreated, and same-sex attracted teens are overrepresented in the adolescent patients who began flooding gender clinics in the 2010s and among detransitioners. That a gay rights group would back medical interventions that have the potential to sterilize homosexual adolescents is a tragic reversal of purpose. Article content In an interview, Dr. Jake Donaldson, one of three Alberta doctors who filed the challenge alongside the CMA, inadvertently highlighted the questionable rationale for these extreme medical interventions. He believes that puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones help gender-distressed youth blend in better as members of the opposite sex, which makes them 'safer and happier.' But even if that were true — and there is no high-quality evidence to suggest that it is — this approach only offers a superficial, short-term fix that ignores the deeper psychological struggles of these youth. And it can come at such immense long-term cost in the form of sterility, sexual dysfunction, and lifelong medical dependence. Article content 'Medicine is a calling,' explained the CMA president in her statement. 'Doctors pursue it because they are compelled to care for and promote the well-being of patients.' Article content Yet noble intentions are no safeguard against harm. History is littered with medical scandals. At the centre of each one, there were well-intentioned doctors who left a trail of devastation in their quest to help patients. The doctors who prescribed thalidomide didn't do so with the intention of causing major birth defects; the obstetricians who sent expectant mothers for prenatal X-rays didn't deliberately set out to cause childhood leukemia, and Walter Freeman famously believed his prefrontal lobotomies were a humane alternative to the deplorable conditions in insane asylums. Article content At this point, there is little doubt that paediatric gender medicine is destined to take its place in history alongside these medical catastrophes. Therefore, Alberta is not acting unreasonably; it is acting responsibly. By restricting unproven and irreversible treatments for minors, the province has commendably joined a global wave of governments re-asserting evidence and ethical principles in the face of medical groupthink. It is the CMA — not the Alberta government — that must reckon with its conscience. Article content Mia Hughes specializes in researching pediatric gender medicine, psychiatric epidemics, social contagion and the intersection of trans rights and women's rights. She is the author of ' The WPATH Files,' a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, and director of Genspect Canada. Article content
National Post
19-05-2025
- Health
- National Post
Mia Hughes: Nova Scotia ignores growing evidence against youth gender affirming care
In recent years, a clear pattern has emerged in paediatric gender medicine: every country that has reviewed the evidence for interventions such as puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for adolescents has found it to be exceptionally weak, and responded by shifting towards cautious, psychotherapeutic care. In sharp contrast, Nova Scotia has just announced an expansion of its paediatric gender services to ensure that youth across the province can access these controversial medical treatments. Article content Article content Article content So, who is getting it right? The growing list of nations that have conducted years-long investigations into their gender clinics, commissioned gold-standard systematic reviews, and ultimately acted to protect children from unproven interventions? Article content Article content Or, is it Canadian provinces like Nova Scotia — which have done none of the above, allow ideology to guide public health policy, and continue to follow the increasingly discredited World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), an activist association posing as a medical authority, known for suppressing inconvenient evidence and letting politics shape its guidelines? Article content The evidence for the puberty suppression experiment has been shaky from the beginning, and the rationale highly questionable. Yet, it went largely unchallenged until 2020, when Finland became the first country to apply the brakes after a thorough review of the science. Sweden soon followed, then Norway, Denmark, and England. More recently, Brazil, Chile, Queensland, and Alberta have joined the retreat, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services just released the most scathing review to date. Article content Article content In short, every jurisdiction that has scrutinized this medical protocol has come to the same conclusion — there is no reliable proof of benefit, and the risks are too serious to allow the experiment to continue. Article content Article content For every Canadian province except Alberta to remain steadfastly committed to this treatment model as the dominos fall globally requires an extraordinary level of willful blindness. This is evident in our federal government's ongoing failure to commission an independent review of our paediatric gender clinics, and in our provincial health authorities, which continue to trust WPATH despite a deluge of revelations in recent years that the group has abandoned scientific rigour, evidence-based practice, and the Hippocratic Oath. Article content Equally troubling is that most of Canada's top media outlets choose to ignore this scandal, instead acting as mouthpieces regurgitating activist misinformation. The CBC's coverage of Nova Scotia's announcement is a case in point. Written by a trans-identified reporter, Andrew Lam, the article parrots outdated ideological talking points — such as the long-debunked claim that puberty blockers are fully reversible — as if it was settled science. The piece contains no mention of the international pivot away from this medical approach. This kind of reporting helps to create the conditions for policy decisions like the coming expansion of services in Nova Scotia.
NDTV
02-05-2025
- Health
- NDTV
US Healthy Agency Urges Therapy, Not Transition Treatment For Transgenders
Washington: President Donald Trump's administration released a lengthy review of transgender health care on Thursday that advocates for a greater reliance on behavioral therapy rather than broad gender-affirming medical care for youths with gender dysphoria. The 409-page Health and Human Services report questions standards for the treatment of transgender youth issued by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and is likely to be used to bolster the government's abrupt shift in how to care for a subset of the population that has become a political lightning rod. Major medical groups and those who treat transgender young people sharply criticized the new report as inaccurate. This "best practices" report is in response to an executive order Trump issued days into his second term that says the federal government must not support gender transitions for anyone under age 19. "Our duty is to protect our nation's children - not expose them to unproven and irreversible medical interventions," National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya said in a statement. "We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas." The report questions the ethics of medical interventions for transgender young people, suggesting that adolescents are too young to give consent to life-changing treatments that could result in future infertility. It also cites and echoes a report in England that reinforced a decision by its public health services to stop prescribing puberty blockers outside of research settings. The report's focus on therapy alone troubles advocates The report accuses transgender care specialists of disregarding psychotherapy that might challenge preconceptions, partly because of a "mischaracterization of such approaches as 'conversion therapy,'" a discredited practice that seeks to change patients' sexual orientation or gender identification. About half the states have banned conversion therapy for minors. The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry has said evidence shows conversion therapies inflict harm on young people, including elevated rates of suicidal thoughts. HHS said its report does not address treatment for adults, is not clinical guidance and does not make any policy recommendations. However, it also says the review "is intended for policymakers, clinicians, therapists, medical organizations, and importantly, patients and their families," and it declares that medical professionals involved in transgender care have failed their young patients. The report could create fear for families seeking care and for medical providers, said Shannon Minter, the legal director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights. "It's very chilling to see the federal government injecting politics and ideology into medical science," Minter said. "It's Orwellian. It is designed to confuse and disorient," Minter added. Child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Scott Leibowitz, a co-author of the influential WPATH standards for youth, said the new report "legitimizes the harmful idea that providers should approach young people with the notion that alignment between sex and gender is preferred, instead of approaching the treatment frame in a neutral manner." Major medical groups did not contribute; the administration won't say who did While Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has repeatedly pledged to practice "radical transparency," his department did not release any information about who authored the document. The administration says the new report will go through a peer-review process and will only say who contributed to the report after "in order to help maintain the integrity of this process." The report contradicts American Medical Association guidance, which urges states not to ban gender-affirming care for minors, saying that "empirical evidence has demonstrated that trans and non-binary gender identities are normal variations of human identity and expression." It also was prepared without input from the American Academy of Pediatrics, according to its president, Dr. Susan Kressly. "This report misrepresents the current medical consensus and fails to reflect the realities of pediatric care," Kressly said. She said the AAP was not consulted "yet our policy and intentions behind our recommendations were cited throughout in inaccurate and misleading ways." Dr. Jack Drescher, a New York psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who works on sexual orientation and gender identity issues, said the report is one-sided and "magnifies the risks of treatments while minimizing benefits." Talk therapy is already a prominent part of treatments The Trump administration's report says "many" US adolescents who are transgender or are questioning their gender identity have received surgeries or medications. In fact, such treatments remain rare as a portion of the population. Fewer than 1 in 1,000 adolescents in the US received gender-affirming medication - puberty blockers or hormones - according to a five-year study of those on commercial insurance released this year. About 1,200 patients underwent gender-affirming surgeries in one recent year, according to another study. Gender-affirming care for transgender youth under standards widely used in the US includes developing a plan with medical experts and family members that includes supportive talk therapy and can - but does not always - involve puberty blockers or hormone treatment. Many US adolescents with gender dysphoria may decide not to proceed with medications or surgeries. Jamie Bruesehoff, a New Jersey mom, said her 18-year-old daughter, who was assigned male at birth, identified with girls as soon as she could talk. She began using a female name and pronouns at 8 and received puberty blockers at 11 before eventually beginning estrogen therapy. "She is thriving by every definition of the word," said Bruesehoff, who wrote a book on parenting gender-diverse children. "All of that is because she had access to this support from her family and community and access to evidence-based gender-affirming health care when it was appropriate." Politics looms over doctor's offices A judge has blocked key parts of Trump's order, which includes denying research and educational grants for medical schools, hospitals and other institutions that provide gender-affirming care to people 18 or younger. Several hospitals around the country ceased providing care. The White House said Monday that since Trump took office, HHS has eliminated 215 grants totaling $477 million for research or education on gender-affirming treatment. Most Republican-controlled states have also adopted bans or restrictions on gender-affirming care. A US Supreme Court ruling is pending after justices heard arguments in December in a case about whether states can enforce such laws. The Jan. 28 executive order is among several administration policies aimed at denying the existence of transgender people. Trump also has ordered the government to identify people as either male or female rather than accept a concept of gender in which people fall along a spectrum, remove transgender service members from the military, and bar transgender women and girls from sports competitions that align with their gender. This month, HHS issued guidance to protect whistleblowers who report doctors or hospitals providing gender-affirming care. Judges are blocking enforcement of several of the policies. This latest HHS report, which Trump called for while campaigning last year, represents a reversal in federal policy. The US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which is part of HHS, found that no research had determined that behavioral health interventions could change someone's gender identity or sexual orientation. The 2023 update to the 2015 finding is no longer on the agency's website.
India Today
01-05-2025
- Health
- India Today
Therapy, not transition: Trump administration shifts trans youth health policy
The Trump administration has released a 409-page report urging a shift away from gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth, instead advocating for behavioral report, released by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), questions the global standards set by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), particularly for minors experiencing gender dysphoria. It follows an executive order signed by President Trump during his second term, which bans federal support for gender transitions for individuals under Jay Bhattacharya, Director of the National Institutes of Health, stated, 'We must follow the gold standard of science, not activist agendas,' criticizing the use of puberty blockers and hormone treatments as 'unproven and irreversible.' Despite pledges of radical transparency from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the administration has not disclosed the report's authors. It also excluded input from major medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American Medical Association (AMA). AAP President Dr. Susan Kressly condemned the report, stating it misrepresented medical consensus and cited the AAP's policies in misleading reported by the Associated Press, Medical professionals and advocacy groups expressed alarm at the report's implications. Shannon Minter, legal director at the National Center for Lesbian Rights, called the report 'Orwellian' and warned it could instill fear in families and care providers. Dr. Scott Leibowitz, a co-author of the WPATH standards, criticized the report's bias towards aligning sex and gender, ignoring neutral treatment report emphasizes psychotherapy, claiming it is often sidelined. However, experts argue that talk therapy is already a core part of treatment plans. Studies indicate that only a small fraction of US adolescents undergo gender-affirming surgeries or hormone treatments. Many youths opt for social transitions or talk therapy without medical taking office, Trump has enacted multiple policies targeting transgender rights, including cutting $477 million in grants supporting gender-affirming care. Several hospitals have ceased treatments, and a Supreme Court decision is pending on state-level bans. Critics view the latest report as a politicized attempt to undermine established medical Read: Canada files 200 charges against ArcelorMittal for Fisheries Act violationsMust Watch
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
BREAKING: Trump HHS posts ‘so-called report' pushing conversion therapy & discrediting gender-affirming care
The Trump administration escalated its assault on transgender youth Thursday with the release of a controversial new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that promotes conversion therapy and discredits gender-affirming care. Advocates and experts have said the report is filled with misinformation about both. Keep up with the latest in + news and politics. Commissioned under President Donald Trump's January Executive Order 14187, the 409-page report falsely claims medical transition is harmful and unproven, and promotes 'exploratory therapy'—a rebranded version of conversion practices widely condemned by major medical associations. Related: New Trump Medicaid directive attacks trans people's access to gender-affirming care The order directed HHS to attack WPATH's standards of care, revoke federal funding for transition-related treatments, and reshape public health policy to align with Trump's political agenda. NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, who has no background in gender-affirming care, introduced the report. Bhattacharya rose to prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic as a co-author of the controversial Great Barrington Declaration, which pushed to lift lockdowns and allow widespread infection to build herd immunity—a position sharply rejected by public health experts. The HHS report claims that gender-affirming care lacks evidence of benefit, but makes this argument by dismissing peer-reviewed research and reframing therapeutic approaches as medical risks. It labels the gender-affirming care model as experimental and portrays puberty blockers and hormone treatments as unethical interventions pushed by activists rather than doctors. While the document stops short of issuing policy mandates, critics say it lays the groundwork for future federal restrictions. Notably, the report endorses what it calls 'gender exploratory therapy,' which it positions as an alternative to what it derides as 'affirmation-only' approaches. But experts say this is simply conversion therapy under a new name. 'They can call it whatever they want,' said Kellan Baker, executive director of the Whitman-Walker Institute. 'The idea is the same—it is a practice with a predetermined goal: to try to change who someone is. That is the definition of conversion therapy.' Baker warned that the rebranding is a deliberate attempt to avoid the legal and political liabilities now associated with a discredited and widely banned practice. In its press release, HHS emphasized that the report's authors would remain anonymous. While unnamed authorship on agency reviews is not unprecedented, a former HHS official told The Advocate it is highly irregular for the department to spotlight the anonymity. Medical and legal experts immediately denounced the report's implications. 'Today's report seeks to erase decades of research and learning, replacing it with propaganda,' said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. 'It promotes the same kind of conversion therapy long used to shame LGBTQ+ people.' GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis called the document 'discredited junk science.' 'A report in the suggestion that someone's authentic self and who they are can be 'changed' is discredited junk science,' Ellis said in a statement. 'This so-called guidance is grossly misleading and in direct contrast to the recommendation of every leading health authority in the world. This report amounts to nothing more than forcing the same discredited idea of conversion therapy that ripped families apart and harmed gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people for decades.' Janna Barkin, author of He's Always Been My Son and A Grand Love, has a 27-year-old transgender son who transitioned as a minor. In an interview with The Advocate, Barkin called the report 'deeply troubling' and 'extremely disappointing.' 'My child was struggling, depressed, and anxious until he received thoughtful, lifesaving care,' Barkin said. 'We found medical professionals who helped guide our decisions, and after he got the care he needed, his light came back. He was able to live fully and happily as the man he is.' She warned that this kind of government interference not only undermines science but endangers lives. 'I feel like trans people are being used to push an agenda that seeks to eliminate not just trans people, but other marginalized communities as well,' Barkin said. 'It is terrifying. Trans kids are waking up afraid. Trans adults are afraid. This administration's focus on erasing people is not about protecting children—it's about control.' The Trevor Project warned the report may further endanger trans youth, who already face high rates of suicide. Research consistently shows that gender-affirming care improves mental health outcomes, while conversion efforts increase the risk of depression and suicide. Related: Doctors warn of 'terrifying' effects as Trump creates snitch line to report gender-affirming care patients 'It is deeply troubling to see the country's top authority on health publish a collection of recommendations that seemingly have no basis in following established health care best practices, science, or input from providers who actually administer the type of health care in question," director of law and policy at The Trevor Project, Casey Pick, said in a statement. "This report not only rejects health care best practices for transgender people — it goes a step further by recommending conversion therapy, though under a new, rebranded name, 'exploratory therapy'. Despite the report's claims, this is, in fact, the same harmful practice of conversion therapy, just using friendlier language." Baker, a nationally recognized, Johns Hopkins-educated expert on health equity, told The Advocate the HHS report is 'a political document pretending to be science.' 'This is conversion therapy under a different name,' Baker, who is trans, said. 'It is a cynical, dangerous attempt to rebrand a practice that's been proven to harm people and dress it up as 'exploration.' But the intent is the same: to deny trans youth the care they need.' Baker emphasized that 'every major U.S. medical association supports gender-affirming care because it saves lives and affirms dignity.' 'This document does the opposite,' he said. 'It undermines trust, spreads misinformation, and leaves families and providers wondering if they'll be prosecuted for doing the right thing.' 'It's gaslighting, plain and simple,' said Barkin. 'They're trying to paint care as danger and danger as protection.' Adrian Shanker, former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health Policy in the Biden administration, criticized the administration's approach: 'Trans people, like all Americans, deserve the highest quality health care and deserve to know the science behind our health decisions, which is why this report is so concerning—it's a compilation of junk science parading as a scientific report.' Shanker also highlighted procedural issues, noting that the report's conclusions were predetermined by the executive order: 'This administration has missed no opportunities to remove the rights and health of trans people, and they've really proven just how far they will go for an anti-trans agenda.' Shanker emphasized, 'Efforts to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity have been attempted for decades, and in every instance they've caused harm. Conversion therapy doesn't convert anyone, and it's not therapy; it's just harm.' Editor's note: This developing story has been updated with additional reporting.
