Fewer Than 0.1 Percent of Teens Receive Gender-Affirming Care, Study Shows

Fewer than 1 in 1,000 U.S. adolescents with commercial insurance received gender-affirming medications — puberty blockers or hormones — during a recent five-year period, according to the study released Monday.

The findings, published in JAMA Pediatrics, suggest that fewer than 0.1% of all youth in the database received these medications. Only 926 adolescents were prescribed puberty blockers, and 1,927 received hormones during the five-year period.

Why It Matters

The lack of data on the use of gender-affirming medications has fueled exaggerated and misleading claims in political discussions. The finding is the most reliable estimate yet and shows that the the number of young people accessing transgender healthcare is very low.

What To Know

The study analyzed a large insurance claims database with over 5 million patients aged 8 to 17 between 2018 and 2022, and included insurance plans in all 50 states.

No patients under age 12 were prescribed hormones. The study does not cover Medicaid patients and did not examine surgical procedures, which other research shows are extremely rare among minors.

Upcoming Supreme Court Ruling

The Supreme Court is set to rule on a Tennessee case concerning gender-affirming care later this year.

Tennessee, with over 20 other states in support, have banned minors’ access to puberty blockers, hormone therapy or sex change surgery and say it is harmful to young people.

Parents of transgender children and teens, allied with the Biden administration, say that young people should be allowed to use puberty blockers, hormones and, if needed, surgery to align with their gender.

What People Are Saying

Landon Hughes, Harvard public health researcher and lead author said: “We are not seeing inappropriate use of this sort of care… It’s certainly not happening at the rate people often think it is.”

Hughes hopes the study “cools heads” and provides a clearer understanding of how many people access gender-affirming care.

Dr. Scott Leibowitz, co-lead author of the adolescent standards of care for the World Professional Association for Transgender Health said: the study “adds to the growing evidence base about best practices when serving transgender and gender-diverse youth.”

Leibowitz emphasized that not all transgender youth seek medical treatments.

Transgender adolescents “come to understand their gender at different times and in different ways,” he said, noting that the best care should include experts in adolescent identity development who can work with families to help figure out what’s appropriate for each young person.

What Happens Next

Gender-affirming care laws have been restricted or banned in at least 26 states, many facing ongoing lawsuits. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to roll back protections for transgender individuals.

This article includes reporting from the Associated Press