AG Nessel Files Lawsuit Challenging Federal Attack on Transgender Care for Young People

LANSING – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has joined a coalition of 18 other attorneys general in suing to ensure the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cannot threaten providers with a so-called declaration that baselessly and unlawfully attempts to eliminate access to transgender care for young people (PDF). The declaration purports to set the standard of care for certain forms of transgender care, claiming all care for transgender youth is “unsafe and ineffective.”  The declaration goes on to threaten to punish any doctors, hospitals, or clinics that continue to provide such care with exclusion from the federal Medicare and Medicaid programs. Attorney General Nessel and the coalition argue that this declaration violates federal statutes by unlawfully changing medical standards without going through the notice and comment process and undermining states’ longstanding authority to regulate medicine. The coalition asks the court to intervene and set aside the unlawful and arbitrary declaration.

 “The Trump administration is once again unlawfully attacking essential health care for transgender youth,” Nessel said. “While it is clear this White House does not consider the long-term consequences of the health, safety, and well-being of Americans, my office will continue to fight against those who illegally target the public health and medical treatment of Michiganders to push their political agenda.”

On December 18, HHS published a document that the agency called a “declaration,” claiming that certain forms of transgender care for young people are “unsafe and ineffective.” In the declaration, Secretary Kennedy claimed to give HHS the power to exclude health care providers and institutions from the Medicare and Medicaid programs simply for providing health care to transgender adolescents. The agency also announced two proposed rules that would completely bar these care providers and associated hospitals from participating in Medicare and Medicaid and ban payments for transgender health care through Medicaid. These rules have not yet gone into effect, and HHS has given the public until February 17, 2026, to submit comments on the proposals.

Attorney General Nessel and the coalition argue that HHS is attempting to use the declaration to circumvent basic legal requirements for policy changes. Federal law requires agencies to provide the public with notice and an opportunity to comment before making significant changes to health care policy. Instead, HHS issued what it arbitrarily called a “declaration” and attempted to make it immediately effective nationwide without consulting doctors, patients, or states. The attorneys general contend that this is a clear overreach by the federal government, given that HHS does not have the authority to take such an action. For generations, states—not the federal government—have been responsible for regulating the practice of medicine. By attempting to impose a single nationwide standard and threatening to punish providers who adhere to well-established, evidence-based care, HHS is unlawfully interfering in decisions that should be made by doctors and their patients.

The attorneys general warn that HHS will attempt to use this unlawful action to enact immediate and widespread consequences. For transgender youth and their families, it creates fear and uncertainty about whether ongoing care could suddenly be taken away. For doctors and hospitals, it threatens severe penalties simply for treating their patients with medically necessary care. For states, it puts Medicare and Medicaid programs at risk – programs that millions of people depend on for everyday and lifesaving care. States rely on broad networks of providers to deliver essential health services. By threatening to disqualify providers who offer transgender care to young people, the federal government is forcing doctors to choose between abandoning their patients or risking their livelihoods. This pressure will reduce access to care, worsen provider shortages, and harm Medicare and Medicaid patients far beyond those seeking this care.

Attorney General Nessel and the coalition are asking the court to rule that the HHS declaration is unlawful and block its enforcement.

Joining Attorney General Nessel in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.

###