By The Daily Wire (World News) | Created at 2026-08-11 23:41:10 | Updated at 2026-08-12 00:16:33
5 hours ago
The Trump administration announced Tuesday that a final rule barring federal Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) funds from being used to pay for transgender medical interventions for minors, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries.
“Today, we are ending federal taxpayer funding for sex-rejecting procedures on children,” Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said. “These interventions carry serious risks and can cause irreversible harm. The federal government will no longer use Medicaid and CHIP dollars to fund procedures that fail to meet the evidentiary standard our children deserve.”
President Donald Trump celebrated the decision Tuesday, saying his administration would no longer force taxpayers to finance “barbaric surgeries and practices” on children.
“Just think about all of the young, innocent, and perhaps confused children who will be spared!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz said the policy is intended to protect children from experimental and potentially irreversible medical interventions.
“Children deserve our protection, not experimental interventions that pose serious risks and convey no proven benefits,” Oz said. “By cutting off federal funds for these sex-rejecting procedures, we’re following the science, saving taxpayer dollars, and, most importantly, protecting children from potentially irreversible harm so they can truly flourish.”
CMS said its decision followed a review of national and international research conducted by HHS that identified what the agency described as significant evidence gaps and safety concerns.
CMS said the procedures can carry potentially permanent consequences, including infertility, impaired sexual function, diminished bone density, altered brain development, and other lasting physiological effects.
The agency also pointed to the United Kingdom’s Cass Review, a comprehensive examination of medical treatment for transgender-identifying children, as evidence of international scrutiny surrounding the treatments.
The new rule includes a taper-off period for minors already receiving hormone therapy. Federal Medicaid and CHIP funding will remain available for up to six months after the rule takes effect to allow patients to safely get off hormone treatment.
The rule does not affect Medicaid or CHIP coverage for mental health services, which CMS said will continue to be covered under existing federal requirements.
Trump tied the policy to the upcoming midterm elections.
“Please remember this when you are casting your vote in the Midterm Elections in November,” he wrote.
CMS said Tuesday’s action is specifically focused on the use of federal taxpayer dollars.
“The Trump Administration is drawing a clear line: America’s children will not be subjected to life-altering interventions on the taxpayer’s dime without reliable evidence of safety and clinical benefit,” HHS Press Secretary Emily Hilliard said.
The rule is set to take effect October 13, putting the federal funding restrictions in place less than a month before the November midterm elections.
