On Wednesday, July 9, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hosted a day-long workshop on “The Dangers of ‘Gender-Affirming Care’ for Minors.” The stated purpose of the workshop was to examine “whether consumers are being or have been exposed to false or unsupported claims about ‘gender-affirming care’ and potential harms consumers may be experiencing.” Of particular concern to the FTC is whether the promotion and administration of “gender-affirming care” to minors involves an “unfair or deceptive trade practice.” This workshop follows the release of a significant and comprehensive report by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services on May 1, 2025 about gender dysphoria among children and adolescents. These events are just the latest in a series of developments and reports in the U.S. that are raising alarm over the harmful effects of puberty-blockers, cross-sex hormones, and gender-reassignment surgeries on minor children.

FTC Workshop on the Dangers of “Gender-Affirming Care” for Minors

FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson opened the July 9 meeting with extensive remarks expressing serious concerns about the impact that “gender affirming care” is having on children suffering from gender dysphoria and their families. “Americans have a right to health claims substantiated by reliable scientific evidence. They have a right to be informed about information that would be material to their decision to accept hormone therapies or sex-change surgeries. The FTC’s mandate is to protect those rights in this context as it does in every other healthcare context.”

“As Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission,” Ferguson stated, “Congress has entrusted me with protecting citizens from deceptive acts and practices, and one of the reasons we are here today is to examine whether some of the practices in gender-affirming care are deceptive and require greater scrutiny by the FTC.”

According to Chairman Ferguson, the FTC will issue a public request for information on these topics next week and will open a 60-day comment period to receive input from the public.

More information about the workshop, including video excerpts, are available at the DoNoHarm website.

HHS Releases Comprehensive Review of Medical Interventions for Children and Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria

In another related significant development, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a comprehensive review of the “evidence and best practices for promoting the health of children and adolescents with gender dysphoria” on May 1. In regard to the 409 page report, Treatment for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria-Review of Evidence and Best Practices, HHS states, “This review, informed by an evidence-based medicine approach, reveals serious concerns about medical interventions, such as puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and surgeries, that attempt to transition children and adolescents away from their sex.”

As stated by HHS, the review also “highlights a growing body of evidence pointing to significant risks—including irreversible harms such as infertility—while finding very weak evidence of benefit. That weakness has been a consistent finding of systematic reviews of evidence around the world.”

“Society has a special responsibility to safeguard the well-being of children,” states the Foreword to the report. “Given that the challenges faced by these patients intersect with deeply contested issues of moral and social significance—including social identity, sex and reproduction, bodily integrity, and sex-based norms of expression and behavior—the medical practices that have recently emerged to address their needs have become a focus of significant controversy.”

While the report is clear that it does not include specific legislative or policy recommendations, it does seek to “provide the most accurate and current information available regarding the evidence base for the treatment of gender dysphoria…, the state of the relevant medical field in the United States, and the ethical considerations associated with the treatments offered.”

Of possibly greatest concern is recognition in the report that some leading individuals and organizations in the medical and psychiatric fields have engaged in what appears to be a politically-motivated, agenda-driven approach that often only tolerates the acceptance of gender-affirming care and discards or suppresses evidence to the contrary.

Conclusion

As stated above, these two events are just the latest in a growing body of scientific, medical, and cultural developments that are pulling back the curtain and raising alarm over gender dysphoria, gender confusion, and so-called “gender affirming care.” As more citizens and policy leaders become aware of and better informed about how this social contagion is victimizing America’s youth and families, we fully expect the momentum around this incredibly important issue to grow and to result in positive change in medicine, psychology, science, and other areas of our culture.