{"id":789,"date":"2026-04-03T10:03:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-03T10:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/picsura.com\/?p=789"},"modified":"2026-04-03T10:03:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-03T10:03:00","slug":"gender-affirming-care-has-become-a-political-test-for-top-medical-groups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/picsura.com\/?p=789","title":{"rendered":"Gender-affirming care has become a political test for top medical groups"},"content":{"rendered":"

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issued<\/p>\n

2026-04-03 05:00<\/p>\n

5:00<\/p>\n

April 3, 2026<\/p>\n

morning<\/p>\n

America\/Chicago<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The nation’s largest medical association supports gender-affirming medicine, a position it has reiterated in various ways over the past decade. But as Republicans press major medical institutions on medical care for transgender youth, the American Medical Association (AMA) has become the latest group torn between political rhetoric and the complex reality of specialized care that few people receive. <\/p>\n

What the medical community has to say will matter as patients, families and doctors navigate this treatment in an increasingly confusing and hostile environment. But these days, there’s even more uncertainty over what they have to say and how politicians will interpret it. <\/p>\n

The AMA’s stance had already been called into question after a January meeting between leaders of major medical groups and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Director Dr. Mehmet Oz. After the meeting, first reported by the New York Times, one of the groups in attendance, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), muddied the debate over whether it had taken a more restrictive stance on gender-affirming treatments.<\/p>\n

Questions soon followed to the AMA, the nation’s most prominent organization representing physicians.<\/p>\n

Twenty Republican state attorneys general are calling on the AMA to broadly oppose gender-affirming care for minors in the wake of news reports about recommendations regarding juvenile surgery. Lawyers have suggested that the AMA may be violating state consumer protection laws by confusing and even misleading health care providers and patients about its position. They say they “want to avoid a formal investigation” into the matter. <\/p>\n

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    Mothers risk arrest to protect gender-affirming care for transgender youth<\/p><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

    Lawyers led by Steve Marshall of Alabama wrote a letter in February asking whether hormone therapy or puberty blockers should be recommended to treat gender dysphoria in minors. <\/p>\n

    \u201cIf you agree that there is insufficient evidence to support the use of surgical interventions to treat gender dysphoria in minors, as your recent statements indicate, we do not understand how we can find that there is sufficient evidence to support the use of hormonal interventions to treat gender dysphoria in minors,\u201d their letter reads. <\/p>\n

    This is an escalation of a familiar tactic, said Khadijah Silver, director of gender justice and health equity at Lawyers for Good Government. And if successful, they said, it could be a major weapon in the political fight to decriminalize gender-affirming care. <\/p>\n

    \u201cIf we can convince the public that we have changed our attitude, that is very powerful,\u201d they said, referring to the AMA. <\/p>\n

    In some ways, its impact is already being felt.<\/p>\n

    At a recent Congressional hearing on the rising cost of health care, the chairman of the American Medical Association’s Board of Trustees was asked about how patients across the country are struggling to find doctors. Two hours into the hearing, he was also asked about gender-affirming care for transgender youth. Although this topic does not affect most Americans, it occupies much political conversation. <\/p>\n

    Rep. Erin Houchin, a Republican from Indiana, asked why the medical community changed its position on surgeries for transgender youth. <\/p>\n

    But the AMA insists it has not changed its position. <\/p>\n

    “In the case of surgery and minors, we generally believe that surgery should be delayed until adulthood. However, we respect the physician-patient-family relationship in making that decision,” Dr. David H. Izus said in response to questions from lawmakers. <\/p>\n

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      The exchange took just a few minutes during a hearing that covered all the crises facing the U.S. health care system, including rising insurance premiums and a worsening shortage of doctors. But it represents growing tensions between Republicans and the medical community, with elected officials who oppose gender-affirming care pushing for big health organizations to do the same. <\/p>\n

      The American Medical Association declined to comment on the attorney general’s letter, which requested a response by March 25. In a broader statement, the medical group said it supported gender-affirming care. <\/p>\n

      “We support evidence-based medical treatments, including gender-affirming care,” an AMA spokesperson said in an email. “At this time, there is insufficient evidence for surgical intervention in minors for us to make a final statement. In the absence of clear evidence, surgical intervention in minors should generally be deferred until adulthood. Treatment decisions should be made between physicians and patients (and families) based on the best medical evidence and clinical judgment.”<\/p>\n

      This position is consistent with the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), an authority on transgender medicine. WPATH recommends that patients wait until they are an adult before undergoing surgery. Transgender youth rarely undergo surgery of any kind. Although there are a few surgeries performed on adolescents, the majority are mastectomies. <\/p>\n

      WPATH recommends that if adolescents require surgery, they meet a wide range of criteria, including a thorough understanding of reproductive side effects, one year’s worth of hormone therapy, persistent gender nonconformity, and emotional and cognitive maturity. <\/p>\n

      Questions surrounding the surgery have emerged following the American Society of Plastic Surgeons’ response to a January meeting with Oz. In what The Times described as a “tense” meeting, Oz pressed leaders of organizations such as the AMA and ASPS on why they advocate gender-affirming care for transgender youth. At that meeting, the surgeon’s association said it would change its position, the paper said.<\/p>\n

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