ATTORNEY GENERAL TONG JOINS COALITION CHALLENGING TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S LATEST ATTACK ON HEALTHCARE FOR TRANSGENDER YOUTH

The following information was released by the office of the Connecticut Attorney General:

Attorney General William Tong today led a coalition of 22 states in challenging the Trump administration's attempt to prohibit states from using federal Medicaid funds for gender-affirming care for low-income minors and some young adults.

In the lawsuit, the coalition argues that since the creation of the Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) programs in the 1960s, Congress has always granted states the authority to determine which services would be covered under their Medicaid and CHIP programs, subject only to limits set by statute. The coalition asserts that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are now acting without statutory authority or a reasoned basis to second-guess state Medicaid agencies' reliance on individualized medical necessity and treatment decisions made by healthcare providers. Instead, based solely on CMS's unilateral decision making, the agencies are categorically excluding medically necessary healthcare services from federal reimbursement only when provided to low-income transgender adolescents.

"Once again, Trump is trying to replace the professional medical advice of doctors and the personal choices of patients with his own MAGA political priorities, and abusing our tax dollars and federal healthcare programs to bully everyone into submission. His actions are cruel and illegal, and we have sued and already secured multiple federal court orders to stop him, including blocking his threat to withhold Medicare and Medicaid to hospitals and clinics providing gender-affirming care and his efforts to erase gender-affirming care from Affordable Care Act protections. We will continue to vigorously prosecute our litigation to ensure Connecticut families and providers may continue to live their lives and do their jobs free from cruel partisan meddling," said Attorney General Tong.

In December 2025, HHS proposed a rule prohibiting federal reimbursement for gender-affirming care for Medicaid beneficiaries under age 18 and CHIP beneficiaries under age 19, despite covering the same healthcare treatment when provided to non-transgender youth. HHS received more than 30,000 comments on the proposal. More than 90% of the comments, including comments from Attorney General Tong and a coalition of state attorneys general, opposed the rule. Despite this strong opposition, the broad medical consensus on the safety and efficacy of transgender youth healthcare and strong state law guardrails to ensure high-quality care, HHS finalized the rule earlier this month, with an effective date of Oct. 13, 2026.

In the complaint, the coalition argues that the rule would set a troubling and unlawful precedent that the executive branch can, without congressional authorization, replace individualized judgments made by licensed medical practitioners with a categorical, agency-determined prohibition on reimbursement for healthcare it disfavors.

The coalition argues that the rule runs counter to several federal and state laws. They also assert that the rule violates the Administrative Procedure Act and the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Since the first day of President Trump's second term, the administration has launched relentless attacks on this small and vulnerable population in nearly every aspect of their lives, but especially in healthcare. Attorney General Tong is fighting to protect access to gender-affirming care across multiple fronts, including suing and securing federal court orders blocking Trump's threat to withhold Medicare and Medicaid to hospitals and clinics providing gender-affirming care and his efforts to erase gender-affirming care from Affordable Care Act protections.

Joining Attorney General Tong in leading today's lawsuit are the attorneys general of Illinois, Maryland, California, and Massachusetts. They are also joined by the attorneys general of Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin, along with the governor of Pennsylvania.