SAN DIEGO — Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego announced this week it will end gender-affirming medical care for patients under 18, citing concerns over “escalating” federal actions tied to funding and regulation, prompting protests and uncertainty for affected families.
Rady Children’s Center for Gender Affirming Care in San Diego has provided care to thousands of patients under the age of 18 who struggle with gender dysphoria since it opened in 2012. This care has included social, psychological, behavioral, and medical interventions, such as hormone therapy and surgery, to support transgender and gender nonconforming youth.
The hospital’s decision comes as the Trump administration puts continuing pressure on states to comply with his executive order banning gender-affirming care for minors nationwide, arguing that this type of care causes “irreparable harm” to minors. The move has prompted legal challenges across the country.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced regulations in December that would bar hospitals from accepting Medicare or Medicaid if they offer gender-affirming care to those under 18, claiming that it is harmful to children.
“These (federal) developments affect our role and responsibilities as a provider participating in federal programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, which are essential to caring for all children and families in our communities. For these reasons, we will no longer be providing gender-affirming medical interventions, procedures and prescriptions,” the hospital said.
Rady’s said it will continue to provide counseling, mental health resources, and care coordination for transgender patients.
The news has been devastating for some local families and youth, such as 17-year-old Autumn Shrader of Oceanside. Since she started receiving gender-affirming care at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, Autumn said it has been easier for her to not only survive, but to thrive.
“Just in general, my brain didn’t feel right until I got on the right hormones and stuff,” said Autumn, who has been a patient of the Center for Gender Affirming Care since 2022. “I just feel happier and more emotionally stable.”
On Saturday, hundreds of people gathered outside of Rady’s to protest the hospital’s decision.
Organized by nonprofit TransFamily Support Services, the protest featured patients, supporters, health care workers, and several elected officials, including state Sen. Toni Atkins and San Diego City Council members Sean Elo-Rivera and Stephen Whitburn.
Tyler, 24, who asked not to include his last name, said he would not be here today without the care he received at Rady Children’s as a transgender minor. It is a crucial resource not only for trans youth but also for their families, he added.
“Taking this away from children for political reasons that are not based in fact or science or anything like that is simply putting so many kids in harm’s way,” Tyler said. “The stakes for many trans youth and trans people in general is life and death, and trans people do not deserve a death sentence.”
These rules have yet to become effective and are expected to face additional legal challenges. However, Rady’s said they have decided to end this care by Feb. 6, leaving families scrambling to find new care.
“Rady’s definitely has done early capitulation, out of fear of the federal government withholding funds. They have decided it’s easier to stop serving these kids than to fight it,” said TransFamily Support Services Director Kathie Moehlig. “This care is research- and scientifically-based, and recommended by all the medical organizations across this country.”
Rady’s is also reportedly under investigation by the federal Department of Health and Human Services for providing youth gender-affirming care. HHS has also launched investigations into other hospitals in Minnesota, Colorado, and Washington state.
These rules have yet to become effective and are expected to face additional legal challenges. However, Rady’s said they have decided to end this care by Feb. 6, leaving families scrambling to find new care.
“Rady’s definitely has done early capitulation, out of fear of the federal government withholding funds. They have decided it’s easier to stop serving these kids than to fight it,” said TransFamily Support Services Director Kathie Moehlig. “This care is research- and scientifically-based, and recommended by all the medical organizations across this country.”
Rady’s is also reportedly under investigation by the federal Department of Health and Human Services for providing youth gender-affirming care. HHS has also launched investigations into other hospitals in Minnesota, Colorado, and Washington state.
Moehlig — whose son was the first patient to receive gender-affirming care at Rady’s — noted that outside of Rady’s, Kaiser Permanente is the only other hospital in the area where youth can get this care. Kaiser announced last summer that it would no longer provide gender-affirming surgeries for minors, but is still continuing to provide hormone therapy and other forms of care.
Gender-affirming care for youth remains legal in California, and state Attorney General Rob Bonta has joined lawsuits fighting the Trump administration’s attempts to ban it.
Bonta stated last year that hospitals and clinics in the state have a legal obligation to continue providing this care, and could face consequences from the state if they stop. When asked by The Coast News about the closure at Rady Children’s, Bonta’s office said they are continuing to push back against the administration.
“The Trump Administration is continuing its threats on hospitals that place medically-necessary gender-affirming care nationwide at risk. We will continue to challenge those unlawful threats so that these providers can provide gender-affirming care as they did before the Trump Administration threatened legal action. We have nothing further to share at this time,” the AG’s press office said.
Several organizations have voiced their support for transgender youth in the wake of Rady’s decision, including San Diego Pride, North County LGBTQ Center, PFLAG San Diego County, and more. North County LGBTQ Resource Center Director Max Disposti said the federal government is using misinformation to justify denying care to patients.
“At North County LGBTQ Resource Center, we serve hundreds of trans folks. We are here to debunk the myths, and help people understand that everyone should have the right to medical care, especially in this case, because they are supported by their own parents,” said Disposti.
Over the past year, the Trump administration has implemented several other policies targeting transgender individuals, including prohibiting transgender people from serving in the military, preventing changes to gender markers on IDs and passports, and declaring that the federal government legally recognizes only two genders.
Research shows that transgender youth are far more likely to experience depression and suicide than their cisgender peers, and that gender-affirming care, along with family and community acceptance, can greatly reduce suicidality and depression.
A 2019 study from The Trevor Project found that 35% of trans youth had attempted suicide in the past year compared to 7% of cisgender youth, and further studies indicate that these rates are rising as more anti-transgender laws are passed throughout the country.
“Individuals’ medical choices should be between them, their parents and their providers. It should not be dictated by politicians,” Moehlig said.
