Public Comment: Opposing CMS Rules Targeting Gender-Affirming Care for Trans Youth

WHY THIS MATTERS

PRH, Abortion Care Network (ACN), and National Abortion Federation (NAF) submitted comments in opposition to two proposed regulations that target access to gender-affirming care for trans youth. 

One rule would prohibit federal funds, like Medicaid and CHIP, from covering transition-related healthcare for trans youth. The other rule would bar any hospital participating in Medicare and Medicaid programs—nearly all hospitals—from providing trans healthcare to young people under eighteen.

Our comments highlight stories from the physicians in our networks who deliver gender-affirming care and are committed to ensuring that everyone can make the decisions that are right for their bodies, their health, and their families. The stories and facts we share illustrate how restrictions on gender-affirming care will harm patients and providers.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

• The proposed rules would prohibit federal Medicaid and CHIP funding for gender-affirming care for trans youth and penalize hospitals that provide such care. 
• Gender-affirming care is supported by major medical organizations and backed by decades of research showing improved mental health outcomes for trans youth who receive it. 
• Research shows that access to care significantly reduces depression and suicidal ideation among transgender and nonbinary youth. 
• Restrictions disproportionately harm low-income families, people of color, immigrants, and rural communities who rely on public insurance and large hospital systems.
• These rules would destabilize the broader health care workforce, increase provider burnout, and open the door to future political interference in other forms of essential care.