The recent unveiling of a comprehensive national database throws stark light on the surge of so-called “gender-affirming care” provided to minors in the United States. From 2019 to 2023, a shocking total of 13,994 minors received interventions ranging from hormone therapies to surgeries as severe as mastectomies and genital reassignment. Of these, 5,747 underwent surgical procedures—a figure that sends a chilling message about the rapid and radical medicalization of young lives.
Delving into the numbers, researchers from the advocacy group Do No Harm, who conducted the analysis of insurance claims, have identified more than 60,000 prescriptions for puberty blockers or hormone replacements. This explosion of medical interventions, totaling a staggering $119 million in insurance claims, points to a disturbing trend in how our medical institutions handle gender dysphoria in children.
This database, far more than a mere statistical record, challenges the recent findings from a Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health study which misleadingly reported minimal surgical interventions among transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) minors. Harvard‘s report claims such surgeries are “rare” and that U.S. surgeons are largely adhering to international guidelines, which recommend against surgical interventions before puberty. Yet, the real-world data speak otherwise, unveiling a narrative of widespread and invasive treatments.
The discrepancy between Harvard’s report and the actual data exposes not only a gross misrepresentation of facts but also a profound failure in our healthcare system’s duty to protect its most vulnerable. The narrative pushed by some corners of academia and echoed through certain medical circles—that barring these surgeries is an act of bias and not of protection—is not only misguided but dangerous. It’s an ideological stance that veils the real risks and lifelong repercussions these medical decisions impose on minors.
Moreover, the stories of detransitioners like Chloe Cole, who underwent a double mastectomy at just 15, only to regret it profoundly later, are heartbreaking testimonials to the irreversible harm being inflicted in the name of progressive healthcare. These are not mere anecdotes but real-life consequences of a radical agenda that has infiltrated our medical institutions, prioritizing radical gender ideology over sound medical practice.
It’s high time we call this what it is: an alarming overreach into the lives of children under the guise of care. We must advocate for policies that protect children from irreversible harm, ensuring that medical standards are not dictated by political agendas but by prudent, cautious, and scientifically grounded healthcare practices. The states that have taken steps to protect minors from these irreversible procedures are not regressive but are instead the vanguard in the fight to protect our children from a disturbing trend that places ideology over safety and science.
