The Advocate
New York elected leaders slammed the Mount Sinai Health System after the medical provider said it would turn over records of transgender patients to the Trump administration. The New York City Council’s LGBTQIA+ Caucus said such a betrayal of medical privacy would contribute to an increasingly hostile environment for trans youth. “Let us be clear: transgender children are not political targets. Their private medical information should be exactly that — private. It should never be treated as evidence in a politically driven investigation, and hospitals entrusted with their care have a crucial responsibility to protect their dignity, privacy, and safety,” the caucus said in a statement. “The same administration that has defied federal court orders 31 times for blatant corruption and illegal deportations in this term alone is now demanding healthcare records from hospitals providing life-saving care to vulnerable children and families already navigating profound fear and uncertainty. This is not about public safety. This is not about protecting children. It is about weaponizing the full force of the federal government to intimidate families out of seeking healthcare that is legal, protected, and life-saving.” Related : Mount Sinai Hospital drops gender-affirming care for trans teens, leaving New York families worried The statement came after parents of transgender children said representatives of the hospital had called to inform them that patient health information would be shared with the federal government, according to Gothamist. “I was blindsided by this because we're not even receiving care there anymore,” said Dawn Gabriel, the parent of a 17-year-old transgender patient previously receiving gender-affirming care. The disclosure marks the second major blow to transgender youth from Mount Sinai this year. In February, the hospital system announced it would stop providing gender-affirming care to minors, citing pressure from the Trump administration. Since President Donald Trump’s return to office, the administration has aggressively sought records related to gender-affirming care for transgender youth. In several instances, however, courts have intervened. On Monday, a federal judge in California ordered Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford not to produce additional patient records sought through a federal grand jury subpoena while litigation challenging the demand continues. Related : Renowned transgender medicine surgeon defends appearing in Epstein files disclosures Families and parents of patients at other New York medical facilities, including NYU Langone and Stanford Medicine, have taken the administration to court over similar subpoenas. The LGBTQIA+ Caucus also noted local law should shield patients’ privacy. “New York has made clear that gender-affirming care is legal, protected, and supported. Our hospitals, institutions, and public officials must meet this moment with courage, not compliance rooted in fear,” the statement from the caucus reads. Related : Trump administration seeks transgender patient records from NYU Langone “To every transgender young person and every family watching this unfold: you are not alone. The LGBTQIA+ Caucus will continue to stand against any and every effort to turn healthcare into a weapon of surveillance, intimidation, or government persecution. Medical decisions must remain between patients, families, and trusted healthcare professionals. No politician should be allowed to turn a child’s healthcare into a weapon of fear.”
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