GLAD Law has filed civil rights complaints against two hospital systems in Connecticut, claiming that their decision to suspend gender-affirming medical care for trans youth was unlawful and violated anti-discrimination policies in the state. The 10 plaintiffs named in the lawsuit include the parents of trans children and an 18-year-old trans man who is being denied care.The families we represent are living through a nightmare, being told with no warning their trusted doctors can no longer provide the care that has stopped their childrens suffering and allowed them to thrive, Hannah Hussey, a staff attorney with GLAD Law, said in a statement. These families have been forced to scramble for a new place to get the care their kids need, which means navigating issues such as delayed care, risks to their physical and mental health, new health care costs, and time-intensive travel, and having to start all over to establish relationships with new providers if they can find them. Related Hospitals are ending their trans youth programs at an accelerating rate The case involves two hospital systems in Connecticut that were the largest gender-affirming care providers for trans youth in the state: Yale New Haven Health and Connecticut Childrens Medical Center. Both hospitals announced in July that they were rolling back their gender-affirming care programs for anyone under the age of 19. Yale New Haven Health stopped prescriptions for hormones or puberty blockers, and Connecticut Childrens Medical Center said its program would be winding down entirely, citing a complex and evolving landscape.These announcements came shortly after Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont (D) signed a bill reaffirming the states commitment to prohibiting discrimination by healthcare providers. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today The decision was made despite there being no state-level ban or federal law prohibiting the provision of gender-affirming care to minors. The only official statement made against the practice came from the presidents executive order Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation.That order, which is a statement of intent for the executive branch and not a law, threatened federal funding and resources for institutions providing gender-affirming care. The order used the strange cut-off age of 19 years old, meaning that the presidential administration was looking to deny care to 18-year-old adults who would be making all of their own health care decisions. Since the Connecticut hospital systems also used 19 as the cutoff age, it seems likely they were complying with the presidents wishes in advance.Thats a really important point here, said Hussey in an interview with The Advocate. There was no federal, there was no state policy requiring the hospitals to shut off this care. And to the contrary, Connecticut has strong non-discrimination laws that protect access to health care for transgender people.Hospitals cannot be made to believe throwing trans people under the bus is risk-free, trans journalist Erin Reed said on social media about the case. The lawsuit goes to the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities and hinges on the fact that gender-affirming care was only suspended for trans people. Cisgender youth are still able to receive the same medications and treatments. Because of that, it means that the trans patients were being discriminated against based on their gender.While gender-affirming care is often thought of in connection with trans people, cisgender people are the recipients of the majority of such care. It includes treatment for low testosterone, estrogen supplements, and top surgery for cis men who suffer from dysphoria. State-level gender-affirming care bans carve out exceptions for cis people, showing that they are not attempting to ban any procedures but just restrict who can access them.The cessation of gender-affirming care for young people at these hospitals has had a considerable impact on many families, not only because they were complying with laws that dont exist, but because of the way that it was handled and how unexpected the move was. The decisions took effect almost immediately in a state that had been viewed as safe for trans families fleeing red states. GLAD Law notes that one of the families in the lawsuit moved to Connecticut from a state with laws hostile to transgender people, in large part for the purpose of securing stable access to health care for their transgender child, then abruptly learned from the media and other parents that their childs medical care was ending.These families have lost their faith in the health care system to serve their children, Hussey added. They are questioning how they can lose access to care overnight in a state with strong laws like Connecticut.Through the lawsuit, GLAD Law hopes a court will order the hospitals to resume providing gender-affirming care to all patients and to comply with Connecticut law, treating all patients equitably.These two hospital systems are among the 21 that, by August, had reportedly temporarily or indefinitely rolled back their programs.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.