Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined 19 other states in suing the Trump administration over its attempt at a near nationwide ban on gender-affirming care for patients under 19 years old. Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a series of regulatory actions designed to block access to gender-affirming care for minors, including threats to cut off federal Medicaid and Medicare funding from hospitals that provide the care.
Medicaid programs in nearly half the states, including Illinois, currently cover gender-affirming care. At least 27 states have adopted laws restricting or banning the care. The suit, filed in Oregon District Court, alleges the Trump administration was circumventing the usual legal methods for rule changes in an attempt to create a near nationwide ban on gender-affirming care for patients under 18, while threatening Children’s Health Insurance Program funding if used to provide care to 19-year-olds.
“Secretary Kennedy does not have the authority to undermine medical standards of care or set conditions on participation in Medicaid and Medicare through a so-called declaration,” Raoul said, referring to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The attorneys general aim to have the changes deemed illegal, saying the move violates the Administrative Procedures Act, which rests with the states.
The suit comes months after Illinois joined in a separate lawsuit with more than a dozen other attorneys general alleging the Trump administration overstepped its authority by threatening health care providers. Co-signers include the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin as well as the governor of Pennsylvania.
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://chicago.suntimes.com/health/2025/12/24/illinois-joins-suit-trump-administrations-attempted-nationwide-ban-on-gender-affirming-care-for-youth