MIAMI – Access to transgender health care in the U.S. is rapidly shrinking as President Donald Trump begins his second term, signing an executive order Tuesday to cut funding for gender-affirming medical care for people under 19.
The order prohibits federal funding for puberty blockers, hormone therapy and gender-affirming surgeries.
“You are forcing these children to go through full puberty as a gender that’s not theirs and making it harder for them to transition as adults,” said Morgan Mayfaire, executive director of Trans Social, a South Florida advocacy group that provides resources for transgender individuals.
Mayfaire warned that the order could have devastating mental health consequences for transgender youth.
“The phone calls have been coming in droves to all the organizations and hotlines. These children are frightened, and so are their parents,” he said.
The order follows comments Trump made Monday at a Republican conference in Doral, where he reaffirmed his stance against transgender individuals serving in the military.
“We will get transgender ideology the hell out of our military. It’s going to be gone,” Trump said.
Trump has reinstated a ban on transgender people serving or enlisting in the military, a policy already facing legal challenges from two LGBTQ+ organizations.
Since taking office this month, Trump has vowed to eliminate what he calls “transgender ideology” from multiple institutions.
In Florida, transgender health care for minors was already banned – even with parental consent – before the president’s executive order.
