(CNSNews.com) - HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra on Tuesday defended President Biden’s intention to use federal funds through the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to pay for sex changes for children.
The secretary said that “everyone in America” should have “access to the health care that they need, whether you’re a child or adult.”
During a House Appropriations Committee hearing on the HHS budget for FY2024, Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) said, “With regards to the president’s comments about funding gender-denying mutilation surgery, that’s all I can call it, because believe me. I’ve seen bilateral mastectomies. I’ve seen penectomies for trauma.
“These are gender mutilating surgeries. Do you really want to pay for that under the CHIPS program? Is the president serious? He wants to take our childhood health insurance program and pay for this. Yes?” Harris asked.
BECERRA: I want to be careful how I answer this, because I answer this as secretary, but I also answer this as a father.
HARRIS: Sir, I’m just asking. Be direct. This is a very simple question. Does the president want to use CHIPS money to pay for gender mutilation surgery?
BECERRA: If it’s a simple question, I will tell you the simple answer is we want to make sure that everyone in America has access to the health care that they need, whether you’re a child or adult.
HARRIS: So the answer the question. The president perceives, and you perceive that that mutilation surgery is what the child needs, not what the child might want, what the child needs. Is that your testimony today?
BECERRA: Congressman, my testimony as you know, we cannot provide any dollar, taxpayer dollar for any service that is ineligible under federal law, but we make sure that if it is eligible under federal law, we will do everything in our power to make sure that child, that adult gets that care.
HARRIS: So even in states where that underage surgery is illegal, your position would be that you should be paying for those surgeries?
BECERRA: We only comply with the law when it comes to the distribution of federal dollars, and so therefore, we make sure that any federal dollar that goes out is to provide the care that medical professionals say that, that individual needs.
HARRIS: I see, regardless of their age?
BECERRA: A medical professional has to make a decision, and then that individual would have to make a judgment.
HARRIS: Even in those states where that would be illegal under state law?
BECERRA: Congressman, you’re asking me to speculate about something that I’m not aware of, so if you could point out where there’s an act that’s occurring that’s against the law, and we can talk about that, but at the federal government, we spend our money complying with the law.
Last year, Biden signed an executive order directing HHS and the Education Department to increase access to what he called “gender-affirming care” for children and to come up with ways to circumvent state efforts to ban such surgeries.