Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. unveiled a forceful new declaration Thursday aimed at halting transgender medical procedures for children, framing the effort as a moral, medical, and governmental duty to protect minors from irreversible harm.
The initiative targets sex-altering surgeries, hormone replacement therapy, and other permanent interventions used to treat gender dysphoriagender dysphoria in minors. According to Kennedy, the federal government will move to withdraw funding and pursue enforcement actions against medical institutions that continue providing these procedures to children.
At the center of the announcement was a stark warning. This debate, Kennedy argued, is no longer theoretical. It is already reshaping young lives in ways that cannot be undone.
Federal Government Signals Zero Tolerance
Speaking during the announcement, Kennedy made clear that the administration sees the issue as a matter of urgency rather than ideology.
“The Trump administration will not stand by while ideology, misinformation, and propaganda push vulnerable young people into decisions they cannot fully understand and that they can never reverse,” Kennedy said Thursday.
He continued by grounding the policy in moral language, appealing to both faith and responsibility.
“There is divine worth in every person, and it shines most brightly in our children. That worth commands us to protect them.”
Behind the scenes, Kennedy’s department is working to strip taxpayer support from medical providers accused of promoting experimental treatments, arguing that public funds should never subsidize irreversible decisions made during childhood.
A Broader Crackdown on Medical Institutions
Kennedy described what he called a pattern of exploitation by segments of the medical industry, accusing institutions of presenting life-altering interventions as simple solutions to complex mental health struggles.
“We’re done with junk science driven by ideological pursuits,” Kennedy declared.
He later expanded on that charge, saying medical professionals have abandoned their ethical obligations in pursuit of ideology and profit.
“They betray the estimated 300,000 American youth ages 13 to 17 conditioned to believe that sex can be changed,” Kennedy said. “They betrayed their Hippocratic Oath to ‘do no harm.’ So-called gender affirming care has inflicted lasting physical and psychological damage on vulnerable young people. This is not medicine; it is malpractice.”
Voices From the Front Lines
Kennedy was joined by senior health officials from President Donald Trump’s administration, Republican lawmakers, and Chloe Cole, a young woman who has publicly spoken about her experience detransitioning after undergoing medical interventions as a minor.
Her remarks added a deeply personal dimension to the policy announcement.
“It’s not too late to accept the beautiful way God has created you,” Cole said during her remarks.
Her testimony underscored the administration’s message that these procedures carry lifelong consequences, often revealed only after the damage has been done.
A National Debate Intensifies
The announcement comes as Republican lawmakers continue pushing legislation at both the state and federal levels to restrict or ban transgender medical treatments for minors. While supporters argue the measures are essential child protections, critics claim they interfere with personal medical decisions.
Kennedy, however, dismissed those objections, insisting the federal government has a responsibility to intervene when children are placed at risk by what he called experimental practices masquerading as care.
“We’re done with junk science driven by ideological pursuits, not the well-being of children.”
