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The Trump administration has issued more than 20 subpoenas to doctors and clinics providing transgender health care to minors.
It is part of an investigation into health care fraud and false statements, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Wednesday.
The announcement did not identify any of the doctors or clinics under investigation but comes as President Donald Trump steps up efforts to ban children under 18 from seeking gender-affirming care.
- The DOJ issued over 20 subpoenas to doctors and clinics providing gender-affirming care to trans minors, investigating possible health care fraud.
- Attorney General Pam Bondi condemned gender-affirming care for minors as 'mutilation' and vowed to hold medical professionals accountable.
- The investigation follows a Supreme Court ruling upholding Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors by a 6-3 vote.
- The FBI called on the public to report medical providers performing surgeries on trans youth.
- Critics say the subpoenas intimidate providers and threaten patient privacy, while a recent FTC workshop featured only opponents of gender-affirming care.
Subpoenas have been issued to doctors and clinics providing health care to trans youth
Image credits: The White House
“Medical professionals and organizations that mutilated children in the service of a warped ideology will be held accountable by this Department of Justice,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
Officials briefed on the investigation told The New York Times that it was more of a fact-finding mission to determine whether any laws had been broken.
It is aimed at sparking negotiations on the policy of transgender health care for minors, the officials said.
But if investigators do find evidence of health care fraud, they could seek to pursue criminal charges.
Image credits: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
The investigation comes in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling in June that upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for trans youth.
In a 6-3 ruling, the court concluded that minors could not be treated with puberty blockers or hormone therapy treatments.
It was a major win for the state and other states that seek to ban transgender care for minors and already have similar laws in place.
Also in June, the FBI urged members of the public to report medical practitioners, hospitals, or clinics that were providing surgical procedures to trans youth.
Image credits: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
“Help the FBI protect children. As the Attorney General has made clear, we will protect our children and hold accountable those who mutilate them under the guise of gender-affirming care,” a statement on X read.
“Report tips of any hospitals, clinics, or practitioners performing these surgical procedures on children.”
Earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a full-day workshop on the “dangers of gender-affirming care,” NBC News reports.
More than a dozen speakers who disagree with policies on providing gender-affirming care to minors made up the FTC panel.
It comes as Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors was upheld
Help the FBI protect children. As the Attorney General has made clear, we will protect our children and hold accountable those who mutilate them under the guise of gender-affirming care.
Report tips of any hospitals, clinics, or practitioners performing these surgical…
— FBI (@FBI) June 2, 2025
No one with opposing viewpoints was present at the event.
One speaker, Claire Abernathy, had decided to detransition at the age of 18 after receiving a double mastectomy at 14.
“My doctors didn’t tell me that hormones would cause permanent side effects,” Abernathy, who is now 20, said.
“They hid those effects from me. They worked to silence me when I tried to complain about this abuse. We need to make sure no more kids are sold products they can’t return.”
Image credits: Samuel Corum/Getty Images
Other speakers also claimed it was impossible to be “born in the wrong body” and said there was no evidence that gender-affirming care helped to treat gender dysmorphia.
The workshop faced intense backlash from activists who described it as “overreach” and said it was “not the FTC’s lane.”
With Republican states now enforcing bans on gender-affirming care for trans youth, and Trump continuing to push policies that impact the trans community, it appears the government is not aiming to pressure Democratic states to follow suit with the new subpoenas.
Image credits: The White House
Dr. Scott Leibowitz previously ran a youth gender clinic in Ohio, but last year the state’s ban took effect and he had to stop.
“This politically motivated effort is a drastic overreach and a backhanded attempt to intimidate providers and institutions serving the transgender youth population,” the child and adolescent psychiatrist told The New York Times.
The subpoenas, he said, would create “widespread fear for every patient in the country who will be wondering when or if their private health care records will be released.”
According to data cited by the Supreme Court, more than 1.6 million people in the U.S. aged over 13 identify as transgender.
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