The state of Washington gave millions of taxpayer dollars to a controversial “gender-affirming” surgeon who performs surgeries on prison inmates, according to a Daily Wire investigation. 

Stiller Aesthetics, a cosmetic surgery practice led by Dr. Geoffrey Stiller, MD, has received more than $4.3 million from the Washington State Health Care Authority since July 2019, the state spending database shows.

Dr. Stiller offers an array of “transgender” surgical procedures including facial feminization,  “non-binary” double mastectomy, and “bottom surgery,” according to the Stiller Aesthetic website.

“Bottom surgery” is a euphemism for vaginoplasty surgery, a procedure that requires the removal of male genitalia and often uses colon tissue to construct a fake vagina, called a neovagina, which requires lifelong dilation to prevent it from narrowing or closing.

Dr. Stiller has performed “over 1,000 vaginoplasties, averaging 5 procedures a week” and is an “extremely sought after for [male-to-female] bottom surgery,” the website says.

While the spending database does not provide specifics for what each payment to Dr. Stiller was for, public records reviewed by The Daily Wire show Stiller’s clientele included inmates from the Washington Department of Corrections, whose policies support inmates pursuing tax-funded sex-rejection surgeries.

While many sex-rejection interventions are provided to inmates by in-house clinicians, those deemed eligible for sex-change surgery can apply for temporary coverage through Washington state’s Medicaid program, Apple Health, which provides coverage for transgender surgeries.

President Donald Trump banned the use of federal funds to pay for “any medical procedure, treatment, or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex,” in a January 2025 executive order.

In February 2025, however, Washington State led a federal, multi-state lawsuit against the Trump administration, and obtained a preliminary injunction against the order that allowed inmates at federal facilities to continue receiving sex-rejection surgeries.

Payments to Dr. Stiller continued since Trump’s election, with the database showing he pulled in more than $800,000 in taxpayer funds in 2025 alone.

In 2017, Dr. Stiller gained national attention after being given permission to perform vaginoplasties at a small-town hospital in Idaho, despite strong objections from the community. The Washington Post profiled him as a compassionate surgeon caught in the crosshairs of so-called transphobia in a November 2017 article, in which he refers to performing vaginoplasties on gender-confused patients as “the right thing to do.”

However, after experiencing backlash and “multiple controversies” in Idaho related to gender medicine, Dr. Stiller started a new practice six years ago in Spokane, Washington, where it was “much safer to take care of patients,” according to the Stiller Aesthetics website.

But controversy has continued to follow Dr. Stiller, who was arrested for drunk driving in 2021 and has faced multiple medical malpractice lawsuits over the past five years, according to a December 2025 report by InvestigateWest.

One former staff member alleged Dr. Stiller’s drinking habits impaired his ability to perform surgery and resulted in at least one botched surgery, according to the report.

Dr. Stiller did not respond to The Daily Wire’s request for comment on the allegations.

Court records show Dr. Stiller was performing surgeries for the prison system. He was one of two surgeons the Washington Department of Corrections was ordered to contact to “avoid additional unnecessary delay” within 30 days of a legal settlement with a male inmate who sued when he was denied access to sex-rejection surgery while incarcerated.

“Within thirty (30) days of receipt of the Evaluator’s report, the DOC will contact Dr. Geoffrey Stiller at Palouse Surgeons, Pullman, Washington and Dr. Daniel Dugi at Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon to determine which surgeon has the earliest availability for gender affirming surgery,” the court document stated.

A description of Dr. Stiller’s Vaginoplasty expertise circulated inside the Washington DOC / The Daily Wire

Records show Stiller Aesthetics was a “facility contact” on an internal prison list of gender medicine providers, and post-operative transgender surgery instructions from Stiller Aesthetics were distributed to inmates.

The Daily Wire asked Dr. Stiller about the extent of his work with the Washington DOC, and how many incarcerated patients he performs transgender surgery on each year. Dr. Stiller did not respond to inquiries.

Public records obtained by The Daily Wire expose the brutal realities that follow sex-rejection surgeries.

One inmate struggled with self image and physical complications after undergoing a “non-binary” mastectomy, an email obtained through public records requests revealed.

“I saw [redacted] today for their ℅ ongoing chest tightness and concerns regarding the appearance of their chest, post mastectomy. They are also concerned about continued tightness and limited [range of motion] to the upper extremities,” wrote Washington DOC healthcare staff.

“Please set the patient up with some visits to help the patient work through their self-image incongruence. [redacted] is identifying themselves as ‘non-binary’ and ‘asexual’ and though they did not want to maintain breasts, they also report to me they did not want ‘a male chest’ either – in particular they are not happy with the nipple placement and would have liked them placed more central,” the email stated.

Another staff member requested an inmate be placed in a single cell for a full year after undergoing genital surgery to provide privacy for their postoperative dilation needs, a document reviewed by the Daily Wire shows.

“Ms. [redacted] has her gender reassignment surgery scheduled for 11/22/24, after which time she will require a private place to dilate for 30mins 3x daily for six months to 1 year,” states the document.

“Recommending up to 1 year single cell,” the document states.

It was unclear if either of the described inmates were patients of Dr. Stiller. The Washington DOC declined to provide a comment.

In 2020, Dr. Stiller partnered with the nonprofit Genderbands which sponsors sex-rejection surgeries for teens and adolescents who can’t afford surgery costs. Social media with Dr. Stiller’s logo on them offered “FREE Top Surgery.”

A photo of a smiling young woman with fresh double mastectomy scars praises Dr. Stiller for providing the “surgery free of charge through a sponsorship with Genderbands,” in an August 2019 Instagram post.

“The emotional benefits our patients feel after bottom surgery is truly amazing and inspiring as we see the newfound comfort they have with their bodies,” the website states.

Many of the surgery instructions from Stiller Aesthetics tell patients what to expect while hospitalized at MultiCare Deaconess Hospital in Spokane, one of two hospitals Dr. Stiller performs sex-rejection surgeries, according to the Stiller Aesthetics website.

MultiCare told The Daily Wire that Dr. Stiller is not an employee of MultiCare. He does, however, have privileges to use MultiCare Deaconess operating rooms.

Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, head of the National Institutes of Health, will reportedly be the next interim head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The former acting head of the agency, Jim O’Neill, was dismissed from the post last week as part of a larger restructuring of the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. O’Neill will instead be tapped to head the National Science Foundation, according to Politico.

Bhattacharya’s ascension to the top of the CDC would mean the agency would fall under control of one of its longtime critics. Bhattacharya, a professor emeritus of health policy at Stanford, became widely recognized for his criticisms of the CDC during the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the start of the pandemic, Bhattacharya and several associates openly broke with the approach of the top government health officials, including those at the CDC and former White House medical adviser Anthony Fauci. In October 2020, Bhattacharya joined with former Oxford University epidemiologist Dr. Sunetra Gupta and then-Harvard University professor Dr. Martin Kulldorff to write “The Great Barrington Declaration.”

The declaration broke openly with the much more conservative approach to the pandemic government medical experts espoused. The outside experts warned of “damaging physical and mental health impacts” brought on by following lockdown policies, instead urging an approach based on targeted protection for the vulnerable while healthy populations mingle and develop herd immunity.

Bhattacharya’s 2020 warnings have proved prescient in the intervening years. The lockdown policies of the pandemic have been thought to have caused numerous add-on effects, such as spikes in social isolation and alcohol consumption. 

Lockdown policies in schools retarded the growth and education of millions of students. Students in huge chunks of the country fell many months behind typical instruction and the efforts to catch them back up proved lacking, according to a 2023 report from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. The loss in learning continued despite a surge in spending on education.

CDC leadership has undergone a tumultuous time under the second Trump administration. The agency had a Senate-confirmed head last year, but Susan Monarez was removed from the role after less than a month on the job. O’Neill replaced Monarez, and he generated some controversy among health experts last month with the CDC rolled back its recommendations for a slate of vaccines.