US media reports say US President Donald Trump on January 28 signed an executive order aimed at the transgender community, this time prohibiting gender transitions for people under the age of 19.
“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 president’s order says.
The order denotes that “child” or “children” means an individual or individuals under 19 years of age and that the term “pediatric” means relating to the medical care of a child. It also clarifies that the phrase “chemical and surgical mutilation” entails puberty blockers, the use of hormones such as estrogen or testosterone, and surgical procedures. Much of what is mentioned is known as gender-affirming care.
The order also alleges that doctors are ”maiming and sterilizing a growing number of impressionable children under the radical and false claim that adults can change a child’s sex through a series of irreversible medical interventions”.
Trump’s order continues to say it’s a “dangerous trend that will be a stain on our Nation’s history” and that the US will not “fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another”.
The order directs that federally run insurance programs, including Tricare for military families and Medicaid, exclude coverage for such care and calls on the Department of Justice to vigorously pursue litigation and legislation to oppose the practice.
The order notes that the Department of Defense provides health insurance, through TRICARE, to nearly 2 million individuals under the age of 18. As appropriate and consistent with applicable law, the Secretary of Defense shall commence a rulemaking or sub-regulatory action to exclude chemical and surgical mutilation of children from TRICARE coverage and amend the TRICARE provider handbook to exclude chemical and surgical mutilation of children.
The Guardian says this order comes alongside others by the Trump administration that effectively overturn many Biden administration-era protections of transgender people.
On January 27, President Trump signed an order intended to eliminate “gender radicalism in the military”; it directed the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, to revise the Pentagon’s policy on transgender troops, and is widely expected to lead to a ban.
