This week, Do No Harm Action submitted a comment to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on two proposed rules intended to restrict federal funding of child sex change interventions.
The first rule would prevent hospitals from performing these procedures on minors as a condition of participating in Medicare and Medicaid programs, while the second rule would prevent state Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) plans from paying for “sex-rejecting procedures” for minors.
Do No Harm Action’s comment overviews the lack of evidence behind these interventions, citing the fact that every comprehensive review, including the landmark Cass Review, has found the evidence base supporting child sex change interventions to be weak.
Next, the comment debunks some common myths employed by activists to advocate for so-called “gender-affirming care.”
The comment exposes the lack of evidence behind the notion that sex-rejecting procedures reduce suicide risk, citing research showing no evidence of a rise in suicides following the United Kingdom’s restrictions on puberty blockers.
“This emotional blackmail is completely unsupported by the evidence,” the comment states.
The comment also debunks the notion that child sex change interventions are safe and effective, pointing to ample evidence, such as the Cass Review and other comprehensive reports, finding the opposite.
“All systematic reviews performed on this topic have concluded that the evidence underlying medical interventions for gender dysphoria in minors is weak; zero have come out the other way,” the comment notes.
The comment then points out that claims of puberty blockers being “reversible” is likewise a myth as “the effect of pubertal suppression on neurodevelopment is wholly unknown.”
Finally, the comment debunks the claim that the rate of “regret” for minors who have undergone pediatric medical transition is low, pointing both to the paucity of evidence on the topic as well as studies that have found the rate to be significant.