Opinion: Proposed HHS rule on gender-affirming care radically expands use of Medicare, Medicaid as policy weapons

Last Thursday, the Trump administration released a proposed rule prohibiting hospitals that receive Medicare or Medicaid funding from providing any gender affirming care to minors, even when privately funded.

This rule will foreclose access to gender-affirming care for families seeking care at hospitals, even those that have private insurance or are able to self-fund the treatment they need. Some states may pay for gender-affirming care through Medicaid, but hospitals would still be foreclosed from providing this care if they do not want to lose federal funding. The proposed rule is revolutionary in that it radically expands the use of Medicare and Medicaid as policy weapons.

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