Children's national hospital in Washington DC suspends sex change treatments for minors

Starting Aug. 30, Children’s National Hospital will stop prescribing medications related to so-called "gender-affirming care" for minors. The Washington, D.C.–based institution said the decision was due to increased "legal and regulatory risks," though it did not specify what those risks are, according to a statement posted on its Gender Development program webpage.

The statement noted that while hormonal drugs will be discontinued, "LGBT patients are always welcome at Children's National for other medical needs and treatments." It also emphasized that mental health and general support services will continue to be offered.

Federal investigations

The announcement comes amid growing federal investigations. On July 9, the Department of Justice issued more than 20 subpoenas to clinics and doctors involved in gender interventions for minors, focusing on potential cases of "health care fraud" and "false statements."

Attorney General Pamela Bondi said, "Medical professionals and organizations that mutilated children in the service of a misrepresented ideology will be held accountable by this Department of Justice."

Although the hospital has not confirmed whether it is among those under investigation, a spokesperson told Fox News that the decision was made in response to "escalating legal and regulatory risks," while directly referencing the DOJ's actions.

"Protecting children from chemical and surgical mutilation."

This isn’t the first time the hospital has halted such treatments. In January, following President Donald Trump’s executive order titled "Protect Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation," the hospital temporarily suspended hormone prescriptions. That order warns that institutions providing these interventions to minors under the age of 19 will lose federal funding, including Medicare and Medicaid.

The order signed by Trump says that "Across the country today, medical professionals are mutilating and sterilizing an increasing 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. This dangerous trend will be a stain on our nation's history, and it must end."

The order also states that "countless children soon regret having been mutilated and begin to understand the horrible tragedy that they will never be able to conceive their children or raise their children through breastfeeding."

The document concludes with a warning that the United States "will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist or support the so-called 'transition' of a child from one sex to another, and will rigorously enforce all laws prohibiting or limiting these destructive and life-altering procedures."

Reports warn of dangers of procedures

In May, a report from the Department of Health and Human Services warned about the dangers of these procedures, citing risks such as "infertility, sexual dysfunction, elevated risk of psychiatric disorders, cardiovascular damage, metabolic problems, surgical complications and subsequent regret. The document also criticized the so‑called "gender‑affirming" approach for lacking scientific evidence and recommended replacing it with "exploratory therapy."

The warning extends worldwide. In the United Kingdom, other parts of Europe, and countries like New Zealand, authorities have also moved away from these treatments. In December 2024, the British government banned the use of puberty blockers for minors with gender dysphoria, citing medical risks and a lack of evidence of their effectiveness.