Sutter Health ends transgender care for minors
Sacramento-based Sutter Health will stop providing gender-affirming procedures for patients under 19 across its network effective Dec. 10, citing the need to comply with recent federal actions following President Trump’s executive order on youth transitions. A Sutter spokesperson said under-19 surgeries had already ceased and physicians are engaging families to determine care plans in light of anticipated requirements, as other systems including Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Stanford Medicine, and Kaiser Permanente have also paused aspects of minors’ gender care.
📌 Key Facts
- Effective date: Dec. 10; families were notified as early as Nov. 21, according to the San Francisco Standard.
- Sutter statement: ending gender-affirming care for under-19 patients to ensure compliance with recent federal actions; surgeries for under-19 had previously ceased.
- Context: CHLA suspended its program; Stanford Medicine paused surgeries for minors; Kaiser Permanente also made changes; U.S. Catholic bishops voted to ban such treatments at Catholic hospitals.
📊 Relevant Data
Approximately 1.4% of U.S. youth aged 13-17 identify as transgender, equating to about 300,000 individuals.
HOW MANY ADULTS AND YOUTH IDENTIFY AS TRANSGENDER IN THE UNITED STATES? — Williams Institute
Among U.S. youth aged 13-17, transgender identification rates are 1.8% for Latinx, 1.8% for American Indian or Alaska Native, 1.5% for multiracial, 1.4% for Black, 1.3% for White, and 1.0% for Asian, compared to overall youth population demographics where Latinx are 13.2%, White 46.3%, Black not specified in detail but showing overrepresentation for Latinx in trans youth (24.8% of trans youth vs. 13.2% of population).
HOW MANY ADULTS AND YOUTH IDENTIFY AS TRANSGENDER IN THE UNITED STATES? — Williams Institute
Regret rates following gender-affirming surgery are approximately 1% or lower, with studies showing 0.6% for transwomen and 0.3% for transmen.
Detransition Among Transgender and Gender-Diverse People—An Increasing and Increasingly Complex Phenomenon — Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism
Historical studies indicate desistance rates of 60-85% in children with gender dysphoria without medical intervention, though these figures are contested in recent analyses.
The Controversial Research on 'Desistance' in Transgender Youth — KQED
11% of individuals with gender dysphoria also have an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis.
Gender on the Spectrum: Prevalence of Gender Diversity in Autism and Autism in Gender Diversity — Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
Access to gender-affirming care is associated with lower rates of depression, anxiety, and suicidality among transgender and nonbinary youths.
Mental Health Outcomes in Transgender and Nonbinary Youths Receiving Gender-Affirming Care — JAMA Network Open