ROCHESTER >> As a handful of U.S. hospitals suspend certain medical services for transgender youth following an executive order on gender-affirming care, Minnesota hospitals appear to be staying the course.

The Jan. 28 executive order by President Donald Trump states that “it is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist or support” gender-affirming care for minors. The order is being challenged by a federal lawsuit.

Dr. Asa Radix, president of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, responded to the executive order in a statement, saying “policies that restrict or ban access to necessary medical care for transgender youth are harmful to patients and their families.”

Last week, hospitals in Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Colorado announced that they had suspended some gender-affirming care services for patients age 19 and younger, the Associated Press reported. Some child patients at NYU Langone Health in New York City had their gender-affirming care appointments canceled, the New York Times reported, prompting New York Attorney General Letitia James to warn hospitals that refusing that service could break state anti-discrimination law.

In Minnesota, multiple hospitals confirmed that they are still offering gender-affirming care, and no hospitals in the state have publicly announced any cuts or pauses that would affect transgender-specific medical services.

Gender-affirming care is an umbrella term for various medical treatments for transgender and nonbinary individuals. Gender-affirming care can include puberty-blocking medications, psychotherapy, testosterone or estrogen hormone therapy and plastic surgery. Surgeries are rarely performed on transgender minors.

In 2023, in response to a wave of anti-transgender legislation across U.S. states, Minnesota passed new laws that protect access to abortion and gender-affirming care. As a “trans refuge” state, Minnesota law shields trans youth, their guardians and their medical providers against legal actions by states that restrict or ban gender-affirming care for minors.

The majority of health systems in Minnesota that offer gender-affirming care — for youth, adults or both — are clustered in the Twin Cities metro. Two exceptions are Mayo Clinic in Rochester and Essentia Health in Duluth.

Mayo Clinic did not respond to the Post Bulletin’s request for comment.

There are no changes to gender-affirming care services at Essentia at this time, a spokesperson said.

Spokespeople for M Health Fairview, Allina Health and Children’s Minnesota told the Post Bulletin that services at those health systems have not changed. Children’s Minnesota specified that it does not offer gender-affirming surgeries.

Likewise, North Memorial Health said in a written statement that it “is not planning any changes to its gender-affirming care approach at this time.”

“Access to gender-affirming care hasn’t changed at Hennepin Healthcare,” that health system said in a statement to the Post Bulletin. “As Minnesota’s largest public safety net hospital and healthcare system, we remain committed to serving anyone seeking care.”