A group of 15 Democratic attorneys general filed a lawsuit last Friday, suing the current presidential administration for using unlawful executive orders to pressure state medical providers to end gender-affirming care for transgender youth, even though the states statutes and anti-discrimination laws protect the care.The plaintiffs say the presidents actions violate the Constitutions 10th Amendment, separating state and federal powers, and seek to eliminate medically necessary care for transgender adolescents, and thus should be declared unlawful and vacated in their entirety. Related Hospitals are ending their trans youth programs at an accelerating rate In the past two weeks alone, at least six major medical institutions have ended gender-affirming care for young people. The lawsuit accuses the administration of intimidating gender-affirming healthcare providers into ending care under threats of civil and criminal prosecution under laws unconnected to the legal provision of such care. The threats to providers licenses, livelihoods, and liberty have cowed hospitals, clinics, universities, and individual providers into ending the care.After taking office, the president issued executive orders banning gender-affirming care (or as he dishonestly calls it, chemical or surgical mutilation) for all people ages 19 and younger and ending all federal recognition and support of transgender identities altogether. The orders direct federal agencies to withhold funds from states and institutions that provide the care, and instruct the Department of Justice (DOJ) to prosecute organizations and individuals that offer the care. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Both Executive Orders use inaccurate, cruel, demeaning, and inflammatory language designed to deter and interfere with the provision and regulation of medical care, the lawsuit states. These threats [against medical providers] have no basis in law. No federal law prohibits, much less criminalizes, the provision or receipt of gender-affirming care for transgender adolescents. In fact, federal healthcare programs have reimbursed the provision of such care for years.On April 22, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a memorandum that refers to gender-affirming care as a type of fraud and exploitation without providing proof that either is happening, the lawsuit states. Her memo directs U.S. attorneys to prosecute providing such care under federal laws prohibiting female genital mutilation, the distribution of harmful drugs, and the filing of false medical claims (even though gender-affirming care is explicitly covered by law via Medicare). These laws have never been interpreted or enforced to prevent gender-affirming care, and this novel legal interpretation departs from longstanding practice, the lawsuit states. On July 9, the DOJ issued over 20 subpoenas to doctors and clinics providing gender-affirming care, but didnt point out any evidence of actual crimes, the lawsuit states. The subpoenas demand[ed] that providers produce to the federal government a significant amount of private, confidential, and [federally]-protected patient information, the lawsuit states.In her memo, Bondi wrote, Every day, we hear more harrowing stories about children who will suffer for the rest of their lives because of the unconscionable ideology behind gender-affirming care. Under my leadership, the Department of Justice will bring these practices to an end.Said another way, the lawsuit notes, [the] DOJ under Bondis leadership will bring an end to lifesaving medical treatment for transgender and intersex adolescents. Many of the suing states have shield laws to protect patients and providers seeking such care from out-of-state prosecution, as well as anti-discrimination laws guaranteeing access to such care to everyone, including those in state custody. Furthermore, the states suing have additional laws overseeing the lisensure and discipline of medical providers, a power generally delegated to state oversight rather than federal oversight.The lawsuit also notes that in the states affected by the executive orders, people over the age of 18 are legal adults who have legal authority to make medical decisions for themselves. Furthermore, most major medical associations support gender-affirming care for trans youth, the lawsuit adds, and making trans people wait until age 19 to receive gender-affirming care can cause significant psychological harm by forcing them to undergo a puberty whose physiological changes dont correspond to their gender.These actions [of the presidential administration] are causing chaos, confusion, and fear among medical care providers and stoking anxiety and dread among transgender and intersex adolescents and their families, guardians, and caregivers, the lawsuit states. These actions have been decried by the mainstream medical community, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, which has lamented the insertion of politics into the examination room, interfering with the provider-patient relationship. Patients who have experienced gender dysphoria for over six months undergo comprehensive assessments by experts that include mental health screenings and discussions of transitionings long-term impact, the lawsuit notes. Patients are then given an individual care plan that often starts with social transitioning (encouraging the patient to express their gender in public environments). Patients may eventually be prescribed puberty blockers to avoid irreversible pubertal changes, though any surgeries are exceptionally rare for patients under the age of 18.The states include California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) also joined the lawsuit.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.