What Transgender Youth and Families Need to Know about the Executive Orders
A breakdown on how these directives will impact trans people
Another day, another attack on trans rights.
If you have been doomscrolling on social media and saw that Trump signed not one, but three executive orders targeting trans people, you are probably wondering what this all actually means. How bad is it? What’s going to happen next? And why are some institutions already pulling the plug?
Let’s take a look at each one:
Executive Order: Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation
What It Means:
Any medical institution (hospitals and clinics) receiving federal funds (Medicare, Medicaid, federal grants) could lose that funding if they provide gender-affirming care for minors under the age of 19.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will be instructed to perform a “policy review” of Medicaid, Medicare, and the Affordable Care Act (ACA), potentially leading to a cover ban on gender-affirming care.
The Department of Justice will be directed to go after hospitals, clinics and doctors providing gender-affirming care to transgender youth, potentially using existing laws on “genital mutilation” to justify legal action.
Implications:
Many hospitals have paused gender-affirming care services for transgender youth out of fear of losing funding and litigation.
Transgender youth from low-income families, especially BIPOC communities, that rely on federal insurance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid will be disproportionately affected.
Some doctors may stop providing care due to reasonable fear of legal risks and criminalization.
Executive Order: Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government
What It Means:
Federal agencies are directed to define "woman" and "man" strictly as assigned biological sex at birth.
Public accommodations, bathrooms, shelters and sports teams receiving federal funds must enforce sex-segregated policies and restrooms.
Title IX protections will be interpreted in a way that excludes trans women from participating in women’s sports and using gender-affirming spaces.
Implications:
Anyone who has not yet updated their passport or any other federal document with their gender marker will face barriers to employment, housing, and everyday activities where legal federal identification is required.
Travel restrictions for transgender and gender-diverse people with the gender marker X on their federal documents are likely to increase due to greater scrutiny at TSA and border checkpoints.
Transgender women and gender-diverse people will likely be barred from participating in federally funded programs and spaces designated for women.
Homeless shelters and domestic violence services can potentially deny access to transgender individuals on the basis of biological sex.
Federal employment policies are likely to refuse gender-affirming accommodations, further restricting inclusion in the workplace.
Executive Order: Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling
What It Means:
Schools that receive federal funding are prohibited from teaching gender identity and sexuality concepts in K-12 classrooms.
Teachers who discuss gender identity and sexuality with students will be forced to be silent or risk losing their jobs.
Schools must remove LGBTQ+ books and curriculum that do not align with “biological truth” standards, limiting students' access to inclusive resources.
Implications:
Schools that received federal funding are likely to be mandated to get rid of banned books and educational resources that discuss gender identity, sexuality, or LGBTQ+ history.
Transgender and gender-diverse students could face increased isolation, stigma and lack of support in educational settings.
Teachers and counselors may be unable to support transgender students due to risk of unemployment.
Even though these executive orders aren’t immediate bans, hospitals are already pulling back on gender-affirming care for minors. Many hospitals rely on Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal support programs and likely don’t want to risk getting caught in legal battles or lose federal funding. The vague language of these executive orders adds to the chaos, causing many medical institutions to be hesitant in continuing providing gender-affirming care without clear guidance.
Providers are also carefully weighing the risks of criminalization, as these executive orders direct federal agencies to investigate providers who continue providing gender-affirming care which can put their medical licenses and careers on the line.
Overall, these executive orders are blatant attacks on trans people and they won’t stop here. But history has shown that we have fought back before, and we ll do it again. Stay informed, stay connected and take action where and however you can. Our survival and resistance matter.
Next week’s post will cover what we can all do to get involved in the fight.