Congressional lawmakers have approved a measure that would bar Medicaid — the federal health insurance program for low-income Americans — from covering gender-affirming care, including hormonal and surgical interventions, for minors.
The “Do No Harm in Medicaid Act,” sponsored by U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas), is the third in a series of Republican-backed efforts to block people under 18 from accessing medical treatments that assist in a gender transition.
The measure passed by a 215-201 vote, with four Democrats — Reps. Henry Cuellar (Texas), Vicente Gonzalez (Texas), Don Davis (N.C.) and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Wash.) — joining Republicans in support of the ban.
“The American people deserve accountability in how their taxpayer dollars are spent,” Crenshaw said in a statement after introducing the bill in January. “Using Medicaid funds for unproven and irreversible procedures on minors is not only medically irresponsible but also a betrayal of public trust.”
The bill’s passage follows a recent House vote on the “Protect Children’s Innocence Act,” sponsored by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), which would impose prison sentences of up to 10 years on doctors and adults who help minors access gender-affirming care. That measure passed the Republican-led House on a largely party-line vote on December 17.
At the same time, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has proposed two rules that mirror the goals of the Crenshaw and Greene bills. The rules would bar federal funding from covering transition-related care for people under 19 and threaten to cut funding to hospitals or medical centers that provide puberty blockers, hormones, or surgical interventions to minors — procedures the Trump administration has labeled “sex-rejecting procedures.”
Advocates for transgender rights warn that the legislation and proposed rules could have serious consequences for transgender youth, worsening gender dysphoria and feelings of isolation, and increasing the risk of suicide or self-harm.
Neither Crenshaw’s nor Greene’s bill is expected to secure the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster in the U.S. Senate. As a result, both measures are largely viewed as messaging bills intended to signal the issues Republicans plan to emphasize in the 2026 midterm elections.
Many Republicans view transgender rights as a potent “wedge issue,” arguing that it puts Democrats at odds with a majority of Americans who, according to Pew Research Center, support restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors. Some Democrats, meanwhile, have been reluctant to push back aggressively, citing concerns that former Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign was hurt by her support for gender-affirming care for incarcerated transgender people.
Brian K. Bond, CEO of PFLAG National, the nation’s largest advocacy organization for LGBTQ people and their families, called passage of Crenshaw’s bill a “devastating blow” to transgender youth whose families rely on Medicaid.
“By eliminating coverage for medically necessary care, this legislation deliberately puts such treatment further out of reach for those who need it most,” Bond said in a statement. “It sends a clear message that the health and well-being of transgender youth are negotiable, while families are left with fewer options and more fear.”
The U.S. House of Representatives voted largely along party lines to advance a bill that would imprison doctors for providing gender-affirming care to transgender minors and punish parents who consent to their child’s treatment.
The bill, introduced by U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), would impose prison sentences of up to 10 years on medical providers who recommend or prescribe puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or surgery to transgender patients under 18. It would also criminalize parents who consent to their child’s treatment or transport them across state lines to obtain such care.
William Saki is celebrating his new “GAY” license plate after suing Ohio's Bureau of Motor Vehicles for initially rejecting his request. Saki, who lives in the LGBTQ-friendly Cleveland suburb of Lakewood, argued the plate simply reflected his identity as a gay man and should be protected as free speech.
When Saki previously entered “GAY” into the BMV’s online registration tool, it rejected the request as “Inappropriate/Invalid.” The term had been on a list of nearly 62,000 prohibited plate words since 1996.
Among those terms: "QUEER", "HOMO," and even "LESBIAN."
Seattle's local organizing committee for the 2026 FIFA World Cup is moving ahead with a first-of-its-kind "Pride Match" at Lumen Field on June 26, coinciding with the city's Pride Weekend, even though the scheduled game will feature Iran and Egypt, two countries that criminalize homosexuality.
The Pride-adjacent branding was created by the host city, not FIFA, the governing body of international soccer, which has not endorsed the designation.
When FIFA was planning the match schedule, Seattle was in line to host either New Zealand versus Belgium or Egypt versus Iran on June 26. Vancouver ultimately received the New Zealand-Belgium game, leaving Seattle with Egypt versus Iran, reports Outsports.
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