- Department of Public Health
Boston — The recent actions by the Trump Administration seeking to restrict access to medically appropriate, evidence-based care for transgender young people represent a dangerous and deeply troubling intrusion by the federal government into private medical decision-making. Such a sweeping and blunt approach ignores the needs of individual patients, disregards decades of medical consensus, undermines the judgment of trained health care professionals, and puts politics above the health and well-being of children and families.
As a physician, I have cared for many transgender and nonbinary patients across the lifespan. I have seen firsthand how compassionate, evidence-based, gender-affirming care can be lifesaving. Providing such care involves listening to, caring for, supporting, and affirming young people for who they are, and helping them navigate the world safely and with dignity. Gender-affirming care is health care — it is not politics, not ideology, and not something that should be dictated by federal officials far removed from the exam room.
We also must be honest and clear about the scope of this issue. According to CDC data, 3.3% of U.S. high school students identify as transgender or nonbinary. A recent study by researchers at Harvard Chan School of Public Health and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute found that less than 0.1% of transgender students with private health insurance — fewer than 1 in 1,000 — received medications for gender-affirming care, like puberty blockers or hormones. And gender-affirming surgical procedures for transgender youth are exceedingly rare — 2.1 per 100,000, according to a 2024 Harvard Chan study. These very few procedures have been limited solely to older adolescents.
Decisions about a young person’s health are deeply personal and complex. They belong with patients, their families, and their trusted health care providers, who are best equipped to weigh individual needs, circumstances, and risks. Government interference erodes trust in the health care system and places vulnerable young people at even greater risk of harm.
At this time, gender-affirming care remains legal and accessible in Massachusetts. Our responsibility — morally, ethically, medically, and legally — is to protect the health and well-being of every person who calls this state home. That responsibility includes supporting transgender and nonbinary individuals and preserving access to medically necessary care without fear, stigma, or government interference.
Massachusetts has a long and proud history of supporting the rights of transgender people, and leading with science, compassion, and equity. We will continue to stand with the transgender and nonbinary community — including the young people. Transgender youth belong here. They are valued here. And in Massachusetts, we remain committed to doing everything in our power to protect access to the care and support they need to live healthy, safe, and authentic lives.
Robbie Goldstein, MD, PhD
Commissioner of Public Health