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Policy adviser warns HHS moves could cut federal funding for transition-related care for minors
Summary
At the Jan. 12 Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs meeting, Policy Advisor Charlotte Persephone Hoffman outlined an HHS declaration and two proposed rules that could restrict Medicaid/Medicare access for minors receiving transition-related care and urged public comment and committee review.
Policy Advisor Charlotte Persephone Hoffman told the Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs on Jan. 12 that recent actions by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services could threaten federal funding for transition-related care for minors.
Hoffman said HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. issued a declaration asserting that transition-related care for minors is not proper medical care and described two proposed HHS rules: one would bar use of Medicaid funds for transition-related care for minors (a public comment period of roughly 60 days was noted), and a second would prohibit hospitals that provide that care from participating in Medicare or Medicaid. Hoffman characterized the second proposal as unprecedented and far-reaching and warned it could set a precedent for restricting other forms of healthcare.
The advisory framed the legal risk: multiple states have challenged the HHS declaration in court, and Hoffman said the litigation is likely to succeed because the declaration may violate the Administrative Procedure Act. She encouraged commissioners and stakeholders to submit public comments during the rulemaking period and said the Commission’s Health and Wellness Committee is expected to review the proposals and consider a formal response.
Why it matters: Medicaid and Medicare are major sources of funding for hospitals and for many families’ care; a rule that ties participation to the provision of specific services could have systemic effects on access to pediatric and adolescent care. Hoffman also warned that a policy approach targeting one type of care could be used as a template to restrict other services.
Hoffman asked commissioners to monitor the notice-and-comment timeline and suggested the Commission could coordinate public-comment efforts and testimony. The Commission did not vote on a formal response at the Jan. 12 meeting; the Health and Wellness Committee is expected to follow up as the rulemaking proceeds.
