Many clinics have closed or limited their services, but dozens remain open—and some reports suggest treatments moved underground as pressures mounted.
Gender-related medical interventions for minors are continuing in some U.S. clinics, reports show, even in the face of strong opposition from the Trump administration and bans on the procedures in about half of U.S. states.
Some of these treatments are occurring covertly, people on both sides of the controversy suggest. A few clinics, which initially said they would halt procedures, have resumed after an outcry from transgender advocates.
The changes reflect a rapidly evolving situation amid public debate and court battles over whether puberty-blocking drugs, hormones, and surgeries should be allowed for minors in the United States.
Those are among the findings of The Epoch Times, which contacted 30 large and well-known clinics, many of which appear on charts that the American College of Pediatricians released on Aug. 6. Among an estimated 100 major gender clinics for youths, 34 remain open, according to the group.
The Florida-based group is among several smaller physicians organizations that oppose medical and surgical interventions for gender-confused minors. Such dissenting voices are gaining more attention as political winds have shifted and detransitioners have publicly expressed regret over permanently altering their bodies.
Gender-altering drugs and surgeries fall under the umbrella of so-called “gender affirming care.” While countries around the world are increasingly reversing course and prohibiting these procedures, major medical societies in the United States overwhelmingly support prescribing the treatments for gender dysphoria, a psychiatric condition diagnosed when a patient describes a mismatch between biological sex and self-perceived gender.
In early August, leaders of the prominent American Academy of Pediatrics—headquartered in Illinois with 67,000 members nationwide—voted that their top issue was “recognizing transgender patients and providing gender-affirming care.”
Days later, the American College of Pediatricians released data showing that while some clinics remained open, the procedures were being discontinued at an accelerating pace. “The tide is turning” against these “harmful practices,” the group commented in a social media post.
Since 2021, 35 major clinics have shut down and 28 others have restricted their services, according to the Florida group’s charts.
