On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled "Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation," declaring that it is "the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called 'transition' of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures."
The executive order directs agencies to rescind or amend policies that rely on guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), including the group’s "Standards of Care Version 8." The order stated that WPATH’s guidance "lacks scientific integrity."
The Secretary of Health and Human Services will publish a review within 90 days of the order being signed on the existing literature "on best practices for promoting the health of children who assert gender dysphoria, rapid-onset gender dysphoria, or other identity-based confusion," and will use "all available methods" to increase the quality of data to guide practices for improving the health of minors with these conditions or "otherwise seek chemical or surgical mutilation."
The order also directs the heads of executive departments or agencies that provide research or education grants to medical schools to take immediate appropriate steps "to ensure that institutions receiving Federal research or education grants end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children."
