At a Manhattan drop-in center operated by the LGBTQ+ advocacy group New Pride Agenda, it\u2019s common for staff to assist trans people coming from across the country with figuring out how to get on hormones or access other gender-affirming treatments in New York City, said Kei Williams, the organization\u2019s executive director.<\/p>\n
Williams and other advocates say the city\u2019s reputation as an LGBTQ+ safe haven depends, in part, on robust access to care for trans and gender-nonconforming people.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt must be accessible here in New York City,\u201d Williams said. \u201cIf not here, then where?\u201d<\/p>\n
But the future of gender-affirming care for those under 18 is in question in New York and across the nation as the Trump administration threatens to pull funding from hospitals that offer these services.<\/p>\n
New York lawmakers and LGBTQ+ advocates say they are feeling a fresh sense of urgency to secure new state funding and legislation to protect access to care after NYU Langone Health announced this week<\/a> that it was closing its Transgender Youth Health Program in response to the \u201ccurrent regulatory environment.\u201d<\/p>\n The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is in the process of finalizing proposed rules that would block hospitals that provide treatments such as puberty blockers, hormones or surgeries to minors from receiving Medicare or Medicaid dollars \u2014 and that would bar state Medicaid programs from covering that care. A public comment period for the proposals just ended this week.<\/p>\n When the proposed rules were issued in December, federal health officials said<\/a> \u201csex-rejecting procedures\u201d were dangerous and unproven. But the American Academy of Pediatrics<\/a> and other medical groups have pushed back, saying the Trump administration\u2019s claims are not grounded in science.<\/p>\n City and state officials warn that health care providers could violate New York\u2019s robust antidiscrimination laws<\/a> if they deny patients treatment for gender dysphoria, a condition in which a person identifies with a gender that doesn\u2019t match their biological sex.<\/p>\n At a rally to protect care for trans youth at the Stonewall National Monument on Wednesday evening, protesters derided NYU Langone for capitulating to Trump and called on other hospitals in the city to stand up to his administration.<\/p>\n Lorelei Crean, an 18-year-old high school senior who attended the rally, said it can already be a challenge to access gender-affirming care. He said he spent all of last year trying to get an appointment before being seen by a provider to assist in his transition. He said he worried the delay was because he was still a minor.<\/p>\n \u201c\u200aOver the past year, I’ve become a trans youth activist because I had to,\u201d Crean said. \u201cThe Trump administration has attacked every aspect of my existence.\u201d<\/p>\n Protesters also talked about contingency plans. Members of the Democratic Socialists of America, which hosted the rally, proposed making gender-affirming treatments available at standalone clinics funded through state or local dollars, so the services would be more insulated from federal threats.<\/p>\n Some nonprofit clinics, including sites run by Callen-Lorde and Planned Parenthood, currently offer some gender-affirming treatments to minors, though they may not be as extensive as those offered by hospitals.<\/p>\n Planned Parenthood clinics, for example, offer hormone therapy<\/a> for patients aged 16 and 17. But the center being shut down by NYU Langone also provided hormones to younger patients, as well as puberty blockers and other services.<\/p>\n State lawmakers in Albany have introduced multiple bills to protect access to gender-affirming care.<\/p>\n State Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal, a Democrat representing Manhattan’s West Side, has introduced legislation<\/a> requiring New York\u2019s Medicaid program to continue covering gender-affirming care regardless of any rule change from the Trump administration.<\/p>\n The bill, which was referred to the Assembly health committee last month, would also double down on prohibitions against discriminatory practices by hospitals, according to Rosenthal.<\/p>\n \u201cWe must pass bills that confront authoritarianism by arming people with the necessary tools to fight bigoted policies that erode our democracy,\u201d Rosenthal said.<\/p>\n