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A critical deadline passed Wednesday in the federal fight to preserve transgender people’s access to health care. States and providers have sixty days to respond accordingly.

On August 11, the Trump Administration released a final rule that is set to ban Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) from covering most kinds of gender-affirming care for trans young people — including some legal adults at age 18. But “final” is different than “enacted,” and it’s not slated to take effect until October.

“Despite this being called a ‘final rule,’ we have time to fight back,” said The Trevor Project’s Vice President, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen. “Nothing will change overnight.”

States can offset the rule by subsidizing such care with their own dollars. They could also sue the Administration for what many see as a power grab by Trump officials.

“The rule announced today will face legal challenge,” a press release put out by GLAD Law reads, emphasizing that there is precedent in this arena — and even in the recent past, equal rights groups have scored meaningful victories against the White House on this front.

New Study: Gender-Affirming Care Linked to Lower Suicide Risk........

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