Trump’s New Medicaid Rule Targets Gender-Affirming Care for Minors

Mehmet Oz, Administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, speaks at the White House on Sept.

30, 2025, with the backing of President Donald Trump and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F.

Kennedy, Jr. —Alex Brandon—AP The Trump Administration announced Tuesday that it is implementing a rule to restrict federal funding of gender-affirming care for minors.

The rule put forth by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) bars Medicaid from paying for what it calls “sex-rejecting procedures for children under 18.” Also restricted is funding from Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a state and federal program that provides low-cost coverage to families that make too much money to qualify for Medicaid.

"The federal government will no longer use Medicaid and CHIP dollars to fund procedures that fail to meet the evidentiary standard our children deserve," Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F.

Kennedy Jr. said in a press statement about the rule.

Under the new rule, which goes into effect Oct.

13, states can still fund certain treatments—including hormone therapies, puberty blockers, and some surgical procedures—but federal dollars will be restricted.

Mental health services for transgender youths will still be funded through Medicaid.

The cuts will heavily impact the low-income families who rely on Medicaid to access certain treatments that they believe to be necessary for a young person’s well-being.

Read More: For LGBTQ+ People, America's Promise of Refuge Is Fading “There will be legal challenges to this rule,” Shannon Minter, legal director for the National Center for LGBTQ Rights tells TIME.

“I believe it will be deemed to be unlawful when it's challenged.” This is not the first push to limit gender-affirming care access to minors.

According to policy nonprofit KFF, at least 27 states have enacted legislation to that effect, and at least 50% of transgender youths ages 13 to 17 live in those states.

What is gender-affirming care—and who uses it? Gender-affirming care refers to a wide range of social, psychological, behavioural, or medical interventions used to help affirm a person's gender identity.