The announcement Wednesday came the same day the Federal Trade Commission hosted an all-day workshop on the “dangers of gender-affirming care.”
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has issued more than 20 subpoenas to doctors and clinics allegedly involved in providing gender-affirming care to minors, as part of an escalating federal investigation into transgender medical treatment.
The subpoenas, announced Wednesday, do not name the individuals or clinics involved, nor do they clearly define what qualifies as “transgender medical procedures.” Officials said the probes focus on alleged healthcare fraud, false statements, and other potential violations.
“Medical professionals and organizations that mutilated children in the service of a warped ideology will be held accountable by this Department of Justice,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a sharply worded statement.
FTC Hosts Controversial Workshop Targeting Trans Care
Also on Wednesday, the Federal Trade Commission hosted a full-day workshop questioning the safety and legitimacy of gender-affirming care, calling for heightened scrutiny of medical practices related to youth transition. FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson opened the session by suggesting such care is “deceptive” and potentially abusive.
The event featured speakers who oppose transition-related care, including detransitioners, physicians critical of current standards, and conservative legal scholars. Among them was 20-year-old Claire Abernathy, who said she underwent a double mastectomy at 15 and later regretted the decision.
“My doctors didn’t tell me that hormones would cause permanent side effects,” she said. “We need to make sure no more kids are sold products they can’t return.”
Several speakers rejected the medical consensus on gender dysphoria, asserting that there is no scientific basis for the idea of being “born in the wrong body.” Psychologist Miriam Grossman said gender identity lacks objective proof and called transition care a “misleading” and “exploitative” practice.
FTC Chair Ferguson said the commission will be soliciting public input in the coming days to inform future oversight decisions.
Internal and Public Backlash
The workshop drew significant criticism both from within the FTC and from advocacy groups. A statement signed by nearly 150 FTC employees warned that the event could dangerously politicize the agency’s role, stating, “This is not the FTC’s lane.”
Former agency officials echoed those concerns. Eileen Harrington, a former executive director who helped create the FTC’s workshop format in the 1990s, said the commission had never before hosted such a narrowly framed event. “It’s overreach we haven’t seen in 50 years,” she said at a response event hosted by the nonprofit Public Knowledge.
Critics noted that the workshop was closed to the public and featured only anti-trans viewpoints. FTC spokesperson Joe Simonson defended the decision, citing security concerns due to threats received by panelists.
Asked about the exclusion of voices from the broader trans community, Simonson said, “Many of the panelists say they were victims. I don’t know who is on the other side of that.”
Medical Community Pushes Back
Major medical organizations — including the American Medical Association, American Academy of Pediatrics, and American Psychological Association — continue to support access to gender-affirming care for minors, stressing that treatment is individualized and often life-saving.
Kellan Baker, head of the Institute for Health Research and Policy at Whitman-Walker Health, criticized the workshop for excluding medical experts and families who support transgender youth. He helped organize an alternative event Thursday to elevate those perspectives.
“We wanted to hear from the parents and professionals who know this care saves lives,” Baker said.
Federal and State Efforts to Restrict Trans Care
Although there’s currently no federal law banning gender-affirming care for minors, the Trump administration has been working to limit it through agency directives and executive orders. In January, President Trump signed an order barring federal funds from going to hospitals or institutions offering such care, though courts have partially blocked its implementation.
In April, Bondi issued a memo instructing U.S. attorneys to consider using federal laws against female genital mutilation to investigate and prosecute doctors who treat trans minors — a move advocates call an extreme legal overreach.
Meanwhile, 25 states have enacted restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors. Some of those laws are tied up in court, while others focus only on banning surgeries — which are rarely performed on minors to begin with. Seventeen states and D.C. have laws protecting access to care.
Only the U.K. has implemented a nationwide pause on new puberty blocker prescriptions for minors.
Despite legal obstacles, the Trump administration shows no sign of backing down. As one senior Justice Department official said privately, “This is about accountability and restoring truth in medicine — no matter how long it takes.”
