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Children’s Hospital Colorado, Denver Health resume gender-affirming hormone therapy for minors

Children’s Hospital Colorado and Denver Health announced Wednesday that they will return to providing puberty blockers and hormone therapy to minors after a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration.

President Donald Trump’s Jan. 28 order said medical professionals are “maiming and sterilizing” impressionable young children by performing irreversible surgical and chemical interventions by providing them with “puberty blockers” — drugs that suppress sex hormones during puberty — or performing sex change operations.

Meanwhile, critics of the order, such as Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, said it would “result in irreversible physical and mental health harms for transgender youth.”

If the federal judge extends the restraining order to cover Colorado, Children’s Hospital Colorado will restart providing the services again on Feb. 24, the hospital said. 

“Children’s Hospital Colorado believes that families know what is best for their child,” the hospital said in a statement. “Every family should have the right to access expert medical care to support their child’s well-being, including gender-diverse youth.”

The hospital also said it will continue to assess the “rapidly evolving healthcare and legal landscapes.”

Denver Health also restarted some services to patients 18 and younger.

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“We recognize the strain that actions made outside of our control is having on our patients, their families and their care teams. We appreciate the community’s understanding and support as we navigate these sensitive issues and remain focused on providing high-quality care for all of our patients,” hospital officials said in a statement.

Denver Health will continue to pause its gender transition surgeries for patients under 19.

Children’s Hospital Colorado said it has never provided transition surgical services for patients under the age of 18.

In initially halting their gender transition programs, both hospitals cited the potential of losing federal funding.    

Denver Health received $792 million in combined funding from Medicare and Medicaid, which accounted for more than half of the healthcare system’s revenue in 2023.

Not counting Medicaid funding, the hospital system receives roughly $89 million annually from the federal government.

Denver Gazette reporter Deborah Grigsby and 9NEWS contributed to this report.

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