Two of Wisconsin’s largest hospital systems, Children’s Wisconsin and UW Health System, announced they will discontinue gender-affirming care for patients under 18, citing “recent federal actions” as their reason. The decision follows HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s announcement that the Trump administration would take steps to end transition-related care for minors nationwide.
Many patients and families learned of the policy changes through media reporting rather than direct hospital communication. Paul Rossetto, whose teenage son had been receiving gender-affirming care at Children’s Wisconsin for two years, said he was not directly informed by the hospital. “If we hadn’t been contacted by TMJ4, we never would’ve known,” he stated. Rossetto expressed frustration about the lack of transparency, calling the hospital’s approach “infuriating” and criticizing the absence of advance notice about a decision affecting his family’s medical care.
Both hospital systems issued statements providing limited details. Children’s Wisconsin stated it is “currently unable to provide gender affirming pharmacologic care” due to escalating legal and federal regulatory risk, noting that mental and behavioral health services will continue. UW Health stated it is “pausing prescribing puberty blockers and hormone therapy as part of gender affirming care for patients under 18 years of age,” while noting it would “continue to support their health and well-being.” Neither hospital system clarified whether the restrictions apply to existing patients or only new patients, leaving uncertainty about whether current treatment plans would be affected.
Rossetto warned that the decision sets a concerning precedent about government involvement in medical care. He expressed concern about undisclosed elimination of other health services, stating: “It makes me wonder what other health services are being considered to be eliminated that people aren’t gonna find out about until they need them.”
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.tmj4.com/news/local-news/we-never-wouldve-known-people-who-receive-gender-affirming-care-left-in-the-dark-about-treatment-changes