GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — President Donald Trump's recent executive order regarding healthcare for children who identify as transgender has ignited confusion in the medical community and beyond. Signed on Jan. 28, 2025, the order aims to restrict federal funding for gender-affirming care for minors, citing concerns about long-term effects and potential harm.
Per Trump’s order, federal agencies must stop funding research, education and healthcare programs providing or promoting gender-affirming care for minors.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services must rescind or amend policies relying on guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH).
The Department of Health and Human Services must publish a review of existing literature on best practices for promoting the health of children with gender dysphoria within 90 days. Pediatric transgender surgeries and hormone treatments are excluded from federal employee health benefits and TRICARE.
In response to the order, Corewell Health in Grand Rapids has announced it will pause certain hormone therapies for minor patients seeking gender-affirming care.
“It's not that they're stopping it completely. They're still willing to see new people, just maybe not prescribe, if you will, the medical side of things right now, as this thing gets worked out in the courts," explained Jazz McKinney, executive director of GR's Pride Center.
“We still are in adamant disagreement, even with that, because an executive order is not law.”
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has issued a statement reminding healthcare providers of their legal obligation to comply with state laws prohibiting discrimination against individuals based on their membership in a protected class.
As a Michigander you have a constitutional right to seek and receive healthcare services without discrimination, and healthcare providers have an obligation to provide these services to you regardless of the availability of federal funding,” she said in a video posted to social media Friday.
The directives have created a confusing and precarious situation for both healthcare providers and the transgender community. Many hospital networks in West Michigan have declined to comment on how they will interpret the executive order.
"We are part of your community just as much as anybody else, and we just want to live our lives and be able to express ourselves the best we can," said Erin Brefka, a transgender advocate.
“There are companies that are, unfortunately, more concerned about where they're getting their funding than how they are treating their patients.”
Trinity Health told FOX 17 Monday that they were “not able to share anything on this.”
University of Michigan – Sparrow said in a statement they are “assessing the potential impact of this executive order on our healthcare services and the communities we serve. Our priority remains delivering high-quality, accessible care to our patients while ensuring compliance with the law.”
The order has also sparked legal challenges, with families of transgender children filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration in Maryland's federal court, alleging discrimination and overreach of presidential authority.
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