Florida Blasts Joe Biden’s ‘Unscientific’ Approach: Social Gender Transition ‘Should Not Be a Treatment Option for Children or Adolescents’

The Florida Department of Health on Wednesday released guidance on how to treat gender dysmorphia in children and adolescents in response to the Biden administration’s plea for what it calls “gender-affirming” care, making it clear that social gender transition, as well as gender reassignment surgery, “should not be a treatment option for children or adolescents.”

The Biden White House has been promoting what it deems “gender-affirming” care for children and adolescents, most recently a via a guidance via the Office of Population Affairs, which is a division of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

“A safe and affirming healthcare environment is critical in fostering better outcomes for transgender, nonbinary, and other gender expansive children and adolescents,” the guidance states in part, ultimately advocating for social affirmation, puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and even transition surgeries on adolescents suffering from gender dysmorphia:

US: The Biden administration is pushing the gender affirmative model of care hard through US govt agencies. Note the ages for each medical treatment. Cross sex hormones for “early adolescents”. Surgery for adults – and adolescents “on a case by case basis”. https://t.co/n7mtFJhJG7

— Genspect (@genspect) April 17, 2022

The Florida Department of Health responded to the circulating guidance on Wednesday, making it clear that the Biden administration’s approach is simply unscientific:

Today, the Florida Department of Health released guidance pushing back on @HHSGov unscientific shift in the treatment of gender dysphoria for children and adolescents.

The press release is available here: https://t.co/JsE4HcYOUD… pic.twitter.com/vmWQhBsaai

— Florida Dept. of Health (@HealthyFla) April 20, 2022

“The Florida Department of Health wants to clarify evidence recently cited on a fact sheet released by the US Department of Health and Human Services and provide guidance on treating gender dysphoria for children and adolescents,” the guidance begins, citing systematic reviews on hormonal treatment for young people, which “show a trend of low-quality evidence, small sample sizes, and medium to high risk of bias”:

A paper published in the International Review of Psychiatry states that 80% of those seeking clinical care will lose their desire to identify with the nonbirth sex. One review concludes that “hormonal treatments for transgender adolescents can achieve their intended physical effects, but evidence regarding their psychosocial and cognitive impact is generally lacking.”

“Due to the lack of conclusive evidence, and the potential for long-term, irreversible effects,” the Department made it clear that “social gender transition should not be a treatment option for children or adolescents.” Additionally, the guidance states that no one under 18 should use puberty blockers or undergo hormone therapy.

And perhaps most significantly, the Florida Department of Health made it clear that gender reassignment surgery “should not be a treatment option for children or adolescents.”

“Based on the currently available evidence, ‘encouraging mastectomy, ovariectomy, uterine extirpation, penile disablement, tracheal shave, the prescription of hormones which are out of line with the genetic make-up of the child, or puberty blockers, are all clinical practices which run an unacceptably high risk of doing harm,'” the guidance states, clarifying that the guidelines do not apply to children or adolescents with a “genetically or biochemically verifiable disorder of sex development (DSD).”

“These gender extremists are insisting that we accept their feelings as science, yet they do not consider the feelings of others,” said Beth Stelzer, a female powerlifter and founder of Save Women’s Sports. https://t.co/gLxH8hol6y

— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) October 9, 2019

Finally, the Department noted that its guidelines are “consistent with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services age requirement for surgical and non-surgical treatment” and also in line with “guidance, reviews, and recommendations from Sweden, Finland, the United Kingdom, and France.”

Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo said the federal government’s guidance makes it clear that “this was never about health care.”

“It was about injecting political ideology into the health of our children. Children experiencing gender dysphoria should be supported by family and seek counseling, not pushed into an irreversible decision before they reach 18,” he said.

The guidance comes in response to the Biden administration’s overt commitment to advancing the radical LGBT agenda, as President Biden himself has touted the unscientific position, urging parents to affirm their child’s identity and calling it “one of the most powerful things you can do to keep them safe and healthy.”