More Hospitals Resume Trans Care After Trump's EO Temporarily Blocked In Court [AZ, VA]
Hospitals in Arizona and Virginia have resumed trans youth care after Trump's executive order was blocked in court.
Following a federal judge’s restraining order blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting gender-affirming care for minors, two more hospitals have announced they will resume providing care. UVA Health Children’s Hospital and Prisma Community Care both issued statements confirming that, in direct response to the ruling from Biden-appointed Judge Brendan Hurson, they will reinstate gender-affirming care for patients under the age of 19.
“On Feb. 13, 2025, a federal court issued a temporary restraining order suspending the federal executive order on gender-affirming care. Accordingly, UVA Health has resumed the provision of those services that were previously paused in response to the order. UVA Health will continue to monitor legal developments in this case and provide our patients with the best care possible under Virginia and federal law,” said UVA Health Children’s Hospital in their statement. They continue by outlining what services that they offer, including hormone replacement therapy, puberty blockers, and surgery referrals for those who are of age.
Prisma Community Care, based in Phoenix, Arizona, said in a statement, “At Prisma Community Care, we are relieved to lift the suspensions for our patients under 19 whose gender-affirming hormone therapy was halted by this discriminatory executive order. Our healthcare providers have resumed normal operations, ensuring the delivery of evidence-based, patient-centered care. We are in the process of notifying the affected patients to resume their care.” This statement was given in direct response to a separate statement they gave two days earlier stating that they would not provide gender affirming care for those under the age of 19.
Last week, Erin in the Morning reported that Corewell Health in Michigan issued a statement affirming it would resume providing gender-affirming care for people of all ages. Initially, the hospital indicated it would only continue care for existing patients while pausing services for new ones. However, in its latest statement, Corewell Health reversed course, stating, “We are lifting our pause on new hormone therapies for pediatric patients seeking gender-affirming care. Care decisions are best made between physicians and their patients and families.”
This restraining order, as well as the actions of these hospital networks, will likely pave the way for more hospitals to follow suit. Joshua Block, a senior staff attorney for the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, said in a statement regarding the restraining order, "Today's decision should restore both their access to healthcare and protections under the Constitution. Providers who’ve suspended healthcare for their transgender patients should be left with no doubt that they can lift those suspensions and continue to provide healthcare and act in their best medical judgment without risking their funding or worse.”
These actions come amid mounting public pressure, with widespread protests targeting hospitals that capitulated to Trump’s executive order despite its lack of clear legal enforcement mechanisms. But resistance is growing far beyond hospital walls. Demonstrations are surging against the administration’s broader authoritarian maneuvers, including what some critics have described as an attempted coup on the U.S. government and escalated targeting of undocumented immigrants by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The fight against these policies will play out both in the courts and on the streets, as the public pushes back against an administration that has made the systematic erosion of civil rights a defining feature of its rule.
 | A guest post by
|
While this is good news, the war against GAC care - and trans people in general - by the right wing and the current administration is just getting started. They have no stopping point, as they have shown time and time again. We need to prepare for the worst. Look at what happened in Kansas yesterday - and, sadly, this was a state that for a few years had been able to hold back the tide of GAC bans even while it was surrounded by states that had enacted such bans.
I think it’s important to understand here why GAC for minors is such a potent target for the right wing. It’s because from their point of view, there is nothing worse than a trans person who is indistinguishable from a cis person. They WANT to be able to physically identify trans people so they can subject them to all manner of abuse and discrimination. They know that recommended care for trans youth, by avoiding puberty, is very likely to yield great physical and psychological results - and that is anathema to them. It’s all about control and domination, and so forcing trans kids through the wrong puberty is a feature not a bug. Of course there are also some adult transitioners who end up indistinguishable from cis people, and that is similarly intolerable for the extreme right wing. That’s why when GAC for minors goes down, adult care is next.
I believe what is happening to trans people and other minorities is not stable or sustainable, and that things will get worse, eventually extending beyond the targeted groups.
Thanks, Mira. Hearing good news in these dark days brings solace.
I especially appreciate the statement issued by the Phoenix based hospital, “At Prisma Community Care, we are relieved to lift the suspensions for our patients under 19 whose gender-affirming hormone therapy was halted by this discriminatory executive order. Our healthcare providers have resumed normal operations, ensuring the delivery of evidence-based, patient-centered care. We are in the process of notifying the affected patients to resume their care.”
It's nice to hear how they feel instead of meekly resuming care. May they set the example for others who have suspended care.