Above photo: Philadelphia Inquirer.
A federal court in Philadelphia ruled in favor of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia blocking the Trump administration’s demand for the renowned hospital’s Gender and Sexuality Development Program to turn over confidential information about clinic patients. CHOP runs one of the largest clinics in the U.S. which provides medical care and mental health support for transgender and gender-nonbinary children and teens and their families. Each year since 2014, hundreds of new families seek care through the program.
In June, the Department of Justice under Trump subpoenaed CHOP and 19 other hospitals that provide gender affirming care to hand over their patients’ personal information, including birth dates, Social Security numbers and addresses of minors in their care. This is a blatant violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) of 1996.
(HIPAA) protects patient privacy by making it illegal to disclose an individual’s medical information. Health care workers are well aware of the restrictions of HIPAA. Under Trump’s threat to withhold federal funds, some hospitals have shut their gender-affirming care clinics for minors. One was Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles.
The parents of minors receiving gender-affirming care were outraged and frightened by this government overreach. Transgender youth are often the targets of discrimination and violence that can have serious negative consequences for an individual’s mental health.
The American Academy of Pediatrics supports the use of medications for gender-affirming care as safe, effective and medically necessary for the patient’s mental health.
CHOP sought legal recourse along with other subpoenaed hospitals. Boston Children’s Hospital fought and blocked the DOJ subpoena in September. U.S. District Court Judge Myong Joun decided that the subpoena was “motivated only by bad faith.” (beckershospitalreview.com, Sept. 11)
In a statement welcoming the ruling, Boston Children’s stated, “Boston Children’s Hospital is committed to providing comprehensive, gender-affirming care for transgender and gender-diverse youth, emphasizing individualized support and mental health services.” (Reuters, Sept. 9)
In November, in what is hopefully a promising trend, U.S. District Court Judge Mark Kearney in Philadelphia blocked Trump’s DOJ subpoena in favor of CHOP. In a scathing 54-page decision, Judge Kearney wrote “that the medical records sought by the U.S. Department of Justice were beyond the authority granted by Congress” and that “the heightened privacy interests of children and their families substantially outweighs the Department’s need to know.” (Inquirer.com, Nov. 21)
Further, Kearney denied the part of the DOJ subpoena seeking documents related to doctor’s assessments before prescribing medications that help patients have a body that matches their gender identity, along with informed consent and parent-guardian authorization documents.
We are witnesses to this attack on transgender rights in the military, sports, bathroom privileges and now health care. We must continue in our support of the most vulnerable communities and all oppressed members of our class.
