The Trans Journalists Association urges caution in covering the HHS report on gender care

With the recent release of a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report on gender-related medical care for trans youth, the Trans Journalists Association urges newsrooms and journalists reporting on it to exercise due diligence and not take its assertions at face value. 

While this report presents itself as an apolitical “review of evidence and best practices,” it deserves the same scrutiny and careful fact-checking as any government-produced document. Journalists should quote it only with appropriate context and after thorough vetting.

Key facts to consider: 

• The American Academy of Pediatrics has noted that the document “misrepresents the current medical consensus and fails to reflect the realities of pediatric care.” For example, it reiterates the consistently discredited and widely debunked “rapid onset gender dysphoria” theory. 
• The Trump administration has issued multiple statements that contradict current scientific consensus on other topics, from vaccinations to climate change. 
• HHS does not identify the report’s contributors, undercutting journalists’ ability to independently evaluate its conclusions or its authors’ independence and expertise. 
• Other reports and studies on trans health care have required years of research. The Trump administration published this 409-page document within a few months of signing the executive order that called for it, raising questions about its rigor.  
• Of all executive orders issued in 2025 to date, at least one of every 10 has sought to change regulations around gender — part of increasingly explicit efforts to redefine transgender people out of legal existence and exclude them from public life.

This report comes against the backdrop of the administration’s stated intent to restrict access to transgender health care for both youth and adults. All coverage should accurately reflect these very clear political intentions and the effects those intentions have on trans communities. 

The TJA remains committed to the accurate, nuanced coverage of trans rights and communities, and to supporting the careers of gender-expansive journalists. Our stylebook and coverage guide, which has a subsection specifically on health care reporting, is a free resource for additional guidance; we have published topical guides on understanding health care reviews for trans youth and covering executive orders that target trans Americans.