Trump Admin Ends Medicaid Funding for Gender-Transition Procedures for Minors

The Trump Administration is officially cutting off federal Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program funding for sex-change procedures on minors, including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced the final rule Tuesday, saying federal taxpayer dollars will no longer pay for what the agency calls “sex-rejecting procedures” for children and youths.

“Children deserve our protection, not experimental interventions that pose serious risks and convey no proven benefits,” CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet 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.”

The rule is scheduled to take effect Oct. 13, 2026.

CMS says the funding prohibition covers puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgical procedures intended to alter a child’s physical characteristics to correspond with a gender identity different from his or her sex.

The administration argues those interventions carry serious potential long-term risks and that the evidence supporting their use in children is not strong enough to justify federal taxpayer funding.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the federal government was drawing a clear line.

“Today, we are ending federal taxpayer funding for sex-rejecting procedures on children,” Kennedy 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.”

CMS specifically points to potential consequences including infertility, impaired sexual function and diminished bone density, while also citing broader concerns raised by HHS’s review of the scientific literature.

The agency said its decision followed an examination of research in the United States and abroad, including the United Kingdom’s Cass Review, which found major gaps in the evidence surrounding medical interventions for young people with gender dysphoria.

The new rule does not eliminate Medicaid or CHIP coverage for mental health treatment.

CMS says Medicaid’s pediatric coverage requirements will continue to cover eligible mental health services, while CHIP will continue providing medically necessary mental health care under federal law.

There is also a transition period for children already receiving hormone therapy.

Federal Medicaid and CHIP funding may continue for those patients for up to six months after the rule takes effect to allow them to taper off treatment.

Medicaid ends funding for child sex-change procedures as Trump admin slams ‘experimental’ treatmentshttps://t.co/u4EtF5a69h

— Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) August 11, 2026