Health care provider Kaiser Permanente confirmed to The Daily Wire on Wednesday that it was pausing all transgender surgeries for patients under the age of 19 in response to pressure from the Trump administration.
The health care giant said that effective August 29 it would stop doing transgender surgeries — which includes procedures like removing the breasts of girls who identify as boys or other genital procedures. The company said the pause was a result of pressure from the Trump administration cracking down on transgender procedures on minors.
“After significant deliberation and consultation with internal and external experts including our physicians, we’ve made the difficult decision to pause surgical treatment for patients under the age of 19 in our hospitals and surgical centers,” the health care giant told The Daily Wire. “We recognize that this is an extremely challenging and stressful time for our patients seeking care, as well as for our clinicians whose mission is to care for them. We will work closely with each patient to support their care journey.”
The statement from Kaiser Permanente added that it would continue providing all “other gender-affirming care treatment.” This would include things like administering cross-sex hormones to kids, procedures that have been shown to have a serious impact on fertility and body development.
Kaiser Permanente said that the decision was ultimately made because of pressure from the Trump administration.
“Since January, there has been significant focus by the federal government on gender-affirming care, specifically for patients under the age of 19,” the company said. “This has included executive orders instructing federal agencies to take actions to curtail access and restrict funding for gender-affirming care, hospital inquiries by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, and regulatory changes to coverage and broader federal agency review, including by the Federal Trade Commission. Most recently, the U.S. Department of Justice issued subpoenas to doctors and clinics providing gender-affirming care to transgender youth, as part of ongoing federal investigations.”
The pause was first reported on X by activist Billboard Chris.
Kaiser Permanente has been sued by Chloe Cole, a woman who underwent transgender procedures as a minor before she overcame her gender dysphoria. Cole says that her doctors pushed her to medically and surgically attempt to change her gender while she was struggling with mental illness and incapable of full consent.
Cole celebrated the pause on X, thanking the Trump administration for its actions.
Kaiser Permanente, the gender clinic that destroyed my childhood, has confirmed they will be HALTING transgender surgeries for patients under the age of 19 nationwide, effective next month!
This is only a pause, according to internal emails, but these incremental wins must be… pic.twitter.com/6zWQofQlkm
— Chloe Cole ⭐️ (@ChoooCole) July 23, 2025
Cole is represented by the Center for American Liberty, which also praised the decision.
“Kaiser Permanente’s decision is a monumental step toward protecting vulnerable youth,” CEO Mark Trammell said. “For too long, children have been subjected to life-altering surgical procedures at an age when they lack the capacity for informed consent. Our ongoing litigation with courageous detransitioners such as Chloe Cole, Luka Hein, and Clementine Breen has exposed the irreversible harm caused by these medical interventions.”
