Thursday, December 18, 2025
Joint Statement from California Health & Human Services Leaders on Federal Government’s Attack on Health Care for Transgender Americans
In response to the Trump administration’s announcement that it would move to restrict access to health care for transgender Californians, leaders of the California Health & Human Services Agency (CalHHS)—including CalHHS Secretary Kim Johnson, Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) Director Michelle Baass, Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) Director Mary Watanabe, and Department of Public Health (CDPH) Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Erica Pan—released the following joint statement:
“Today the federal government made clear its plans to restrict access to this essential and lifesaving health care. When youth and adults can access health care, their quality of life improves and rates of depression, distress, and suicide decrease. This care is consistent with nationally recognized, evidence-based clinical practice guidelines, including those from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, the Endocrine Society, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association and other leading medical and mental health organizations.
“We want to be clear and remind California’s health plans and providers, as well as transgender youth and their families concerned by this action, that proposed rules are not final and do not carry the force of law. California laws protecting health care for transgender individuals remain in full effect, and providers and health plans must continue to comply with them.
“In California, we are committed to ensuring all people have access to the medically necessary, evidence-based care, that will allow them not only to survive but thrive. We will continue to stand with transgender youth, their families and health care providers, and we will continue to fight the federal administration’s cruel and inhumane policies.”
Background on California Actions to Support All Youth:
- If a California health plan member is having issues accessing medically necessary care, they should first file a complaint, sometimes called a grievance or appeal, with their health plan. If the member does not agree with their health plan's response or the plan takes more than 30 days to address the problem in non-urgent cases, the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) Help Center can work with the member and health plan to resolve the issue. If a health plan member is experiencing an urgent issue, they can contact the DMHC Help Center immediately at www.DMHC.ca.gov. For additional support, DHCS offers assistance to help Medi-Cal members resolve problems with Medi-Cal managed care plan services.
- Medi-Cal members of all ages have access to medically necessary gender affirming care services.
- Medi-Cal managed care plans and county behavioral health plans are required to implement transgender, gender-diverse, and intersex training for staff to promote respectful, inclusive, and evidence-based care. Additionally, managed care plans must identify in-network providers who offer gender affirming service, and both plan types must track, and report grievances related to inclusive care.
- Behavioral health programs provide a broad range of services, including specialty mental health and substance use disorder treatment. DHCS also administers statewide prevention and youth programs through its Prevention and Youth Branch, which supports early intervention, youth empowerment, and mental wellness.
- Programs such as California Friday Night Live and Elevate Youth California invest in youth leadership, mental health awareness, and substance use prevention, with a focus on reaching youth and communities disproportionately unable to access resources and care.
- The Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative expands behavioral health services for children and youth. California law prohibits health plans from denying health care or discriminating against individuals because of the individual’s gender, including gender identity or gender expression.
- SB 497 (Wiener, 2025) provides further protections and prohibits providers and health plans from releasing information related to gender-affirming care even if they receive a subpoena from the federal government or another state.
- In 2023, California implemented the Transgender, Gender Diverse, and Intersex (TGI) Inclusive Care Act which protects the right of Californians to access Gender-Affirming health care services. Under Senate Bill (SB) 923 (Wiener, 2022), the DMHC established the Department’s TGI Working Group. The Working Group developed a quality standard for patient experience to measure cultural competency related to the TGI community and recommended a trans-inclusive training curriculum to be used by health care plan staff who are in direct contact with health plan members in the delivery of health care services. The DMHC issued an All Plan Letter to health plans with guidance regarding SB 923 and the TGI recommendations.
- Additionally, DMHC launched a webpage dedicated to educating Californians on their health care rights and access to gender-affirming health care services. This online resource includes frequently asked questions on TGI care, the types of medically necessary gender-affirming services typically covered by a health plan, fact sheets on navigating your health plan, how to file a complaint or seek an Independent Medical Review (IMR) with the DMHC, and additional useful resources.
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About DMHC
The mission of the DMHC is to ensure health plan members have access to equitable, high-quality, timely, and affordable health care within a stable health care delivery system. The DMHC accomplishes this important mission by regulating health plans, enforcing California’s strong consumer protection laws and assisting health plan members. For more information visit www.DMHC.ca.gov.