MILWAUKEE — In response to President Donald Trump's executive order blocking funding to hospitals that provide gender-affirming care to transgender youth, Children's Wisconsin appears to be canceling new appointments for children seeking care.
Local parents Paul Rossetto and Sarah Moskonas said the aftermath of this decision could be detrimental to both the physical and mental health of Milwaukee's transgender youth.
"They said that for any current patients, their appointments are being kept and there should be no changes to their health care, but new patient appointments are being canceled and stopped for right now," said Rossetto, who has a 12-year-old transgender son.
TMJ4's Ryan Jenkins: What are the ramifications you're concerned about?
Paul Rossetto: "I'm really nervous that transgender kids will not be able to get the coverage they need, that many are in the middle of their coverage right now, and that some of those coverages, like medicine and therapy, can be cut off at a time when it's very critical for them to have it."
While Children's Wisconsin has not returned TMJ4's requests for additional clarity on the state of its gender-affirming care program, several families have contacted TMJ4 News expressing concerns about the future of child gender-affirming care in Wisconsin.
Watch: Parents share concerns as Children's Wisconsin pauses some gender-affirming care
"She was deeply hurt and scared and sad and all of those things," said Moskonas, who has a transgender daughter. Her daughter was recently approved for additional care, but Moskonas said that after President Trump's executive order was signed, her daughter's appointment was canceled.
"I said, 'Is this because of the executive order?' and they confirmed that it was," Moskonas said.
On Friday, Moskonas said Children's Wisconsin reversed course and allowed her daughter to continue treatment.
"That's today. What happens tomorrow? What happens the day after that? I'm not sure," she said.
Both parents are calling on Children's Wisconsin to continue accepting new patients and are sharing this message with people who may not be in the same situation.
"I understand that people think maybe I'm wrong or that this is somehow misplaced or an abuse of my child, and what I would tell them is that I think they deeply don't understand the issue. It maybe challenges some longstanding worldviews, and that can be scary and uncomfortable, but where we're uncomfortable, that's where we have the opportunity to grow," Moskonas said.
The Pediatric and Adolescent Transgender Health clinic, or PATH, at UW Health in Madison is the only other clinic in Wisconsin that provides dedicated gender-affirming care to children.
As of Friday, UW Health spokesperson Emily Greendonner said the hospital system was still looking into how it could be affected by Trump’s order.
“We are evaluating the executive order related to gender affirming care to determine potential impacts to the care we provide,” Greendonner said in an emailed statement.
On Wednesday, Attorney General Josh Kaul issued a joint statement alongside 14 other state attorneys general accusing Trump of using his power to restrict the freedom of patients and their families.
“Gender-affirming care is essential, life-saving medical treatment that supports individuals in living as their authentic selves. The Trump Administration’s recent Executive Order is wrong on the science and the law,” the attorneys general wrote.
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