Trump Admin Backs Nationwide Push To Protect Kids From Transgender Procedures

The Trump administration is backing legislation that would ban doctors from performing transgender procedures on children and allow lawsuits against doctors or hospitals who greenlit such procedures.  

The Justice Department said Wednesday that it had “transmitted a legislative proposal to Congress that protects and defends children from chemical and surgical mutilation under the guise of ‘gender-affirming care.’” In the press release, the DOJ said it was backing a proposal from Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO) that would protect children nationwide from transgender procedures. 

“The Department of Justice has heard from far too many families who have been devastated by mutilative medical procedures that fly in the face of basic biology,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “While we continue our ongoing legal battle to protect children, we appreciate our colleagues in Congress who are working diligently alongside us to end these abusive procedures once and for all.”

The proposal from the Republican lawmakers, called the Victims of Chemical or Surgical Mutilation Act, would ban doctors from doing transgender surgeries like removing the breasts of girls who identify as boys or genital procedures. It would also ban children who identify as transgender from being put on puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones. 

Puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones can permanently destroy fertility, stunt bone growth, and impact heart health. 

The bill would also allow children who were put on transgender procedures to bring a civil suit for “damages against any healthcare professional, physician, hospital, or clinic, who participates in the chemical or surgical mutilation of that child. This includes, but is not limited to, compensatory damages, including all economic damages associated with undoing, correcting, or ameliorating the effects or results of any chemical or surgical mutilation procedures, and noneconomic damages for emotional distress and pain and suffering.”

The legislation would allow kids to sue their doctors within 25 years of their 18th birthday.

President Donald Trump has cracked down on transgender procedures for kids, signing an executive order in January that ended federal funding for any entity performing or promoting the procedures. His administration has also pressured hospitals across the country to stop the procedures.