New York AG Tells Hospitals They Must Continue to Provide Gender-affirming Care
The New York Attorney General has warned New York hospitals that they must continue to provide gender-affirming care to minors, despite attempts by the Trump Administration to prevent federal funding from being used to pay for gender-affirming care. President Trump signed an Executive Order on January 28, 2025 – Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation – prohibiting federal funding from being used to pay for gender-affirming care for individuals under 19 years of age. Some U.S. hospitals paused gender-affirming care for minors in response to the Executive Order; however, New York hospitals were reminded that denying such care risks violating state anti-discrimination laws.
The Executive Order defines gender-affirming care as puberty blockers that delay the onset of puberty, sex hormones to align an individual’s appearance with an identity different to their sex, and any surgical procedures to remove or alter sexual organs to minimize or destroy their natural biological functions. The Executive Order states that “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.”
The New York Attorney General and Attorneys General in 22 other U.S. states filed a lawsuit in federal district court on January 28, 2025, to halt the federal government’s attempts to freeze federal funding, alleging those efforts are illegal. On January 31, 2025, the court issued a Temporary Restraining Order, prohibiting federal agencies from taking actions that “pause, freeze, block, cancel or terminate” the agencies’ compliance with awards and obligations, except as otherwise authorized by existing statute, regulation, or grant terms. The Temporary Restraining Order prohibits the implementation of Executive Orders directing funding to be frozen and the implementation of a now-rescinded memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget.
The New York Attorney General reminded hospitals that they have obligations to comply with state laws that prohibit discrimination against individuals based on membership to a protected class, which includes sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, military status, disability, or marital status.
Should any healthcare provider refuse services based on an individual’s protected status – including transgender individuals based on their gender identity or gender dysphoria diagnosis – while those services are offered to cisgender individuals, that is classed as discrimination and is prohibited under New York law.
On January 5, 2025, New York Attorney General Letitia James and the Attorneys General of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Nevada, Rhode Island, and Vermont issued a joint statement reaffirming their commitment to gender-affirming care.
“As state attorneys general, we stand firmly in support of health care policies that respect the dignity and rights of all people. Health care decisions should be made by patients, families, and doctors, not by a politician trying to use his power to restrict your freedoms. Gender-affirming care is essential, life-saving medical treatment that supports individuals in living as their authentic selves.”
“State attorneys general will continue to enforce state laws that provide access to gender-affirming care in states where such enforcement authority exists, and we will challenge any unlawful effort by the Trump administration to restrict access to it in our jurisdictions.”
