A federal judge on Tuesday stopped an attempt by the Trump administration to subpoena medical records and confidential information of transgender patients who received gender-affirming care at Boston Children’s Hospital, calling the Justice Department’s investigation of such care improper and “motivated only by bad faith.”
District Judge Myong J. Joun granted the hospital’s request to block a federal subpoena seeking information about its staff, patients and provision of puberty blocking medications and hormone therapy to treat gender dysphoria in minors. The Justice Department said in July that it had sent more than 20 subpoenas to doctors and clinics “involved in performing transgender medical procedures on children” in investigations of alleged health care fraud and false statements.
A subpoena sent in June to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and made public in a court filing last month requested patients’ birth dates, Social Security numbers and home addresses, as well as “every writing or record of whatever type” from doctors related to the provision of gender-affirming care to adolescents under the age of 19.
The subpoena requested information dating back to January 2020, more than a year before transition-related care was banned anywhere in the U.S.
The Trump administration has broadly sought to unravel protections for gender-affirming care and ban treatment for minors since President Trump’s return to office in January. A Jan. 28 executive order aims to end federal support for transition-related care for minors and threatens federal funding for hospitals that continue offering hormones, puberty blockers and rare surgeries to anyone younger than 19.
Federal judges have blocked parts of Trump’s order.
Another order, which Trump issued hours into his second term, proclaims the U.S. recognizes only two unchangeable sexes, male and female, and prohibits the government from promoting “gender ideology.”
During a joint address in March, Trump called on Congress to pass legislation “permanently banning and criminalizing sex changes on children and forever ending the lie that any child is trapped in the wrong body.”
The FBI and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have also sought information on medical interventions for gender dysphoria in minors, and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) broke with major professional medical organizations in May in an unsigned review casting doubt on evidence supporting gender-affirming care.
The Trump administration has also moved to ban transgender people from serving openly in the military and prevent transgender students from using school restrooms or locker rooms or playing on sports teams that match their gender identity. Trump and administration officials routinely refer to transgender women as “men.”
Joun, an appointee of former President Biden, wrote in Tuesday’s order that the Trump administration had made its disapproval of the transgender community and gender-affirming care “well known.”
“The subpoena reflects those goals, comprising overbroad requests for documents and information seemingly unrelated to investigating fraud or unlawful off-label promotion,” Joun wrote. “It is abundantly clear that the true purpose of issuing the subpoena is to interfere with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ right to protect [gender-affirming care] within its borders, to harass and intimidate [Boston Children’s Hospital] to stop providing such care, and to dissuade patients from seeking such care.”
Joun added that the government’s stated goal in issuing the subpoena is “in direct contradiction with the Massachusetts constitution,” which has protected access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth and adults since 2022.
“It is thus difficult to understand what exactly the Government is trying to investigate [Boston Children’s Hospital] for,” Joun wrote in Tuesday’s order.
In an emailed statement, Kristen Dattoli, a hospital spokeswoman, said Boston Children’s Hospital, which had previously faced bomb threats over its gender-affirming care, “is grateful for the court’s ruling, which safeguards the privacy of our patients, their families, and the healthcare professionals who provide their care.”
“Access to gender-affirming care is a protected right under Massachusetts law, and we remain committed to providing safe, evidence-based, and compassionate care for every patient and their family,” she said.
A Justice Department spokesperson declined to respond directly to Joun’s order.
“As Attorney General Bondi has made clear, this Department of Justice will use every legal and law enforcement tool available to protect innocent children from being mutilated under the guise of ‘care,’” the spokesperson said.