Hundreds of protesters rallied Thursday night in the rain outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, calling for the hospital to roll back recent restrictions on gender-affirming care for youth.
Denying such care “goes against every ethical standard we are taught in medicine and nursing. It ignores decades of research, the guidance of every major medical organization and the lived experiences of trans people,” family nurse practitioner Jordan Davis told the crowd packed onto the sidewalk on Sunset Boulevard.
“We are here because we refuse to let fear and politics dictate healthcare.”
Protesters rally in support of gender-affirming care for transgender youth outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on Thursday. The group protested the hospital’s decision to pause the initiation of hormonal therapy for transgender patients under the age of 19.
(Jill Connelly / For The Times)
In the aftermath of an executive order by President Trump, the L.A. hospital said it was pausing the initiation of hormonal therapy for “gender affirming care patients” younger than 19. CHLA said it had already suspended gender-affirming surgeries for minors.
“We continue to carefully evaluate the executive order to fully understand its implications,” the hospital said in a statement. “The physical and mental health, safety and well-being of all of our patients remains our highest priority.”
The decision came days after Trump issued an executive order aiming to stop the use of puberty blockers, hormones and other gender-affirming care for youth and directing federal officials to “take all appropriate actions to end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children.” Families of transgender youth have sued to try to stop the executive order, arguing it illegally deprives them of medical care on the basis of their transgender identity.
Among the groups that organized the Thursday night protest were the Democratic Socialists of America-Los Angeles and the Committee of Interns and Residents, which is part of the Service Employees International Union and represents resident physicians and medical fellows. Some of its members do rotations at Children’s Hospital L.A.
“For one of the largest and most famous children’s hospitals in the country to be pausing care … it sends the wrong message,” said Dr. Mahima Iyengar, national secretary-treasurer for CIR-SEIU. “It’s sending a message that healthcare decisions are not being made by doctors right now. They’re being made by politicians instead.”
During the protest, Iyengar read testimonies from parents of transgender children who did not want to be publicly identified to protect their kids, describing how such care had helped them. Protesters hoisted signs that said, “Gender-affirming Care Saves Lives” and “Shame on You, CHLA!” and chanted, “Protect trans kids!”
Protesters rally in support of gender-affirming care for transgender youth outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on Thursday.
(Jill Connelly / For The Times)
To think that “my child feels threatened, and feels like their life doesn’t matter, feels like their life can be compromised, is more than just infuriating. It’s offensive to me,” parent Juan Carlos Pérez told the crowd.
Among those who attended the Thursday protest were Los Angeles City Councilmembers Ysabel Jurado and Hugo Soto-Martinez. Soto-Martinez, whose district includes the children’s hospital, has urged the facility to “take a stand against these hateful and illegal policies.”
The CHLA decision was celebrated by groups including the California Family Council, which contends that the medical care involved in gender transition is risky and harmful for youth. “This is a long-overdue victory for truth, for medical ethics, and most importantly, for vulnerable children who deserve real help, not experimental treatments with lifelong consequences,” its vice president, Greg Burt, said in a statement.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that transgender youth “have access to comprehensive, gender-affirming, and developmentally appropriate health care.”
Dr. Mahima Iyengar shares stories from parents of transgender children with a crowd of demonstrators outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles on Thursday.
(Emily Alpert Reyes / Los Angeles Times)
In a policy statement, the academy describes puberty blockers as reversible, noting that hormones have been used since the 1980s to suppress puberty if a child undergoes it at an unusually early age. Some other physical changes from administering testosterone or estrogen are not reversible, the policy statement said.
Iyengar said that “just like with any medication that you prescribe as a doctor, you talk about risks, you talk about benefits, and you make an individual decision based on the patient in front of you. And ultimately, it’s that patient’s decision at the end of the day. … This is a healthcare decision.”
Surgical procedures for transgender youth have been “rare and almost entirely chest-related procedures,” according to a study of insured patients published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open. The vast majority of breast reductions for minors were for cisgender boys, far outnumbering those for transgender youth, it found.
Among the biggest threats to hospitals outlined in Trump’s order on gender-affirming care are possible changes to the rules for the Medicare and Medicaid programs, a major source of healthcare funding.
A protester holds a rainbow flag while joining the rally in support of gender-affirming care for transgender youth outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
(Jill Connelly / For The Times)
But LGBTQ+ advocates have stressed that such sweeping changes rely on federal rulemaking that has yet to be carried out. California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said that the executive order did not give federal agencies any basis to yank federal funding from healthcare providers.
In a letter this week to CHLA, his office cautioned the hospital that if services are being offered to other people who are not transgender, withholding them from transgender people based on their gender identity is a prohibited form of discrimination.
The hospital told The Times it was not halting hormonal therapy or puberty blockers for children who are not transgender, who might be prescribed them for other medical purposes. As of Wednesday, CHLA said it was reviewing the letter from Bonta’s office.
Los Angeles LGBT Center Chief Executive Joe Hollendoner told the crowd of protesters Thursday night that the children’s hospital could not “hide behind” Trump’s executive order.
“Just because that orange menace signed something on his desk does not mean it is the law of the land!” Hollendoner declared to cheers and applause.
Parents of transgender children told The Times this week that the news had reached families in confusing and unsettling ways. Some patients already receiving hormonal treatment said they had appointments at CHLA abruptly canceled, then later reinstated.
Linda, a parent who asked to be identified only by her first name to protect the privacy of her child, said her 13-year-old has been receiving periodic shots to prevent the onset of puberty but has been interested in switching to an implant that would be effective for a few years.
Demonstrators gather along Sunset Boulevard ahead of a rally to demand that Children’s Hospital Los Angeles reverse its decision to stop for gender-affirming care for transgender patients under age 19.
(Emily Alpert Reyes / Los Angeles Times)
The mother said a hospital staffer called this week and asked whether she still wanted to order the implant, “because it’s going to cost you a lot of money and they may not insert it.”
A CHLA official said Tuesday that existing patients already receiving hormonal therapy would be able to continue with their course of care but did not promptly clarify what kinds of treatment would continue.
Aldo Anderson, left, Keith Anderson and Michael Chwe rally in support of gender-affirming care for transgender youth outside Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
(Jill Connelly / For The Times)
In a statement, the hospital said it would “continue to support our patients and their families with access to robust mental health and social support services, ensuring our patients continue to have access to high-quality care and the best possible health outcomes.”
The American Psychological Assn. has opposed bans on gender-affirming care as “contrary to the principles of evidence-based healthcare” and says that obstructing access to gender-affirming care “heightens the risk of negative mental health outcomes.”
