Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
In A First, Plastic Surgeon Group Sides Against Youth Gender Care Surgeries
The Washington Post: Plastic Surgeon Group Now Opposes Youth Gender Transition Surgeries
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons has issued a broad recommendation against gender transition surgeries for youths, becoming the first major medical association in the United States to narrow its guidance on pediatric gender care amid a crackdown by the Trump administration. A statement sent Tuesday to the group’s 11,000 members and obtained by The Washington Post recommends surgeons delay gender-related chest, genital and facial surgery until a patient is at least 19 years old. Fewer than 1,000 minors in the United States receive such surgeries every year, according to research published in JAMA, the American Medical Association’s journal, and the vast majority of the procedures are mastectomies, not genital surgeries. (Winfield Cunningham, 2/3)
The New York Times: Woman Wins Malpractice Suit Over Gender Surgery As A Minor
In the first malpractice verdict against providers of gender-affirming care for minors, a jury in New York State has awarded a woman $2 million in damages for a double mastectomy she received as a teenager that she said had left her disfigured. The plaintiff, Fox Varian, 22, of Yorktown Heights, had accused her psychologist and the plastic surgeon who performed the operation of failing to obtain adequate consent about the risks before she agreed to undergo the procedure in 2019. (Jacobs, 2/3)
Minnesota Public Radio: Children's Minnesota Will Pause Some Pediatric Gender Health Care Due To Federal Government
Children’s Minnesota announced Tuesday that it will temporarily pause prescribing puberty-suppressing medications and pubertal hormones to patients under the age of 18 in its Gender Health program. This decision will take effect on Feb. 27, if federal actions targeting pediatric health systems that provide this type of care remain unchanged. (Zurek, 2/3)
KCRA: California Sues Hospital For Complying With Trump Administration's Gender-Affirming Care Policy
California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a lawsuit against Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, alleging that the hospital violated the terms of its merger agreement with Children's Hospital of Orange County by discontinuing gender-affirming care for minors. (Joseph, 2/1)
More health news from across the U.S. —
Minnesota Public Radio: Minnesota Expands Review Of 6,000 Medicaid Providers Amid Fraud Concerns
The Minnesota Department of Human Services is bringing on more than 160 additional staff to help inspect Medicaid providers for fraud. It’s part of the state’s push to crack down on fraud in social services programs, amid federal investigations. (Timar-Wilcox, 2/3)
WBUR: Mass. Gov. Healey Proposes Eliminating Deadline To Prosecute Rapes When There's A DNA Match
Gov. Maura Healey wants to eliminate the 15-year deadline to prosecute rape in cases with a DNA match. The proposal is part of her budget recommendation for the 2027 fiscal year. Current Massachusetts law bars rape prosecutions in older cases, even when DNA testing has identified a suspect. (Mariano, 2/2)
Florida Phoenix: After Legal Challenge, State Proposes New Rules For AIDS Drug Assistance Program
The DeSantis administration announced Tuesday that it's developing three new rules meant to curb spending in a federally funded program that provides benefits to people with HIV and AIDS. (Sexton, 2/3)
AP: Legal Experts Say Judge's Mistake Behind Overturning Of Sex Abuse Conviction Stands Out
Two years after a former University of California, Los Angeles, gynecologist was convicted of sex abuse and sentenced to 11 years in prison, an attorney working to prepare an appeal of the case stumbled across an astounding find for the defense counsel. A note by the jury’s foreperson, a designated spokesperson for the jury, had been sent to the judge expressing concern that one of the jurors did not have sufficient English to carry out his duties and deliberate. The juror was an alternate who was brought in after another juror had a medical issue and two days before the verdict. The judge never shared that information with the prosecution or defense attorneys. (Ding and Watson, 2/3)
The Washington Post: Gavin Newsom Sat By His Mother During Her Assisted Suicide, And Came To Terms With Anger And Grief
California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s account of his mother’s death at the age of 55 by assisted suicide, and his feelings of grief and remorse toward a woman with whom he had a loving but complex relationship, is one of the most revealing and emotional passages in the California governor’s book, “Young Man in a Hurry: A Memoir of Discovery,” which will be published Feb. 24. (Reston, 2/4)
Also —
The Washington Post: Hypothermia Suspected In 3 D.C. Deaths As Region Probes Toll Of Cold Snap
At least three people have died from suspected hypothermia in Washington, D.C., as officials in Virginia and Maryland also investigate deaths after the recent winter storm and lingering frigid temperatures. (Elwood, Portnoy and Gathright, 2/4)
KFF Health News: Listen: Many Tents Are Gone, But Washington's Homeless — And Their Health Problems — Aren’t
January’s extreme cold has put a spotlight on the conditions homeless people face. They get sicker and die younger than housed people, often because health problems go untreated. The Trump administration’s removal of homeless tent encampments in Washington, D.C., has made it more difficult for health workers to reach that vulnerable population this winter. (Hart, 2/4)
