Supporters of gender-affirming care rally outside Vanderbilt, criticize GOP 'total lies' about treatments

Supporters of gender-affirming care rallied outside Vanderbilt University Medical Center's children's hospital on Wednesday to criticize Tennessee politicians who they say have used the issue as fodder for the upcoming midterm elections.

They took particular aim at the state's GOP leadership, including Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Gov. Bill Lee, who they say have mischaracterized the treatments performed on minors and demonized Vanderbilt University in the process, something they say puts patients and staff at risk of harm.

"I believe that parents and youth deserve to make their own medical decisions and in privacy with their own doctors," said Kelli X, the pastor of The Village Church in Madison, Tenn. "Jesus called those of us who claim to have the Christian faith to not only love their neighbors as themselves but also to protect the marginalized and vulnerable in their community."

She added that GOP leaders have born "false witness" and spread "total lies" about the treatments provided at the hospital.

The gathering of about a half dozen supporters of transgender rights and gender-affirming care comes after Vanderbilt University Medical Center came under fire from right-wing bloggers and some in the state's Republican leadership for providing treatments to minors.

After the issue gained steam on Twitter last month, Lee released a statement to The Tennessean that Vanderbilt's "pediatric transgender clinic" raised "serious moral, ethical and legal concerns," adding an investigation into the clinic would be necessary. He noted that he passed his concerns on to the state Attorney General's Office.

Vanderbilt University did not comment on Wednesday.

Dive deeper: What to know about gender-affirming care for transgender and nonbinary communities

But a spokesperson for Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti repeated an earlier statement, saying Skrmetti is aware of the allegations and that he "will use the full scope of his authority to ensure compliance with Tennessee law."

Among the other speakers at the rally in support of care was Markus Thurman, who was identified as a transgender college student in Tennessee. Thurman, 20, said he came out as transgender when he was 13 and received a double mastectomy when he was 19.

He said most of the bullying he received was not from his peers but from adults.

"People who do not understand the experience tend to fear it and decide that they yet still somehow understand it," Thurman said. He also said he has not been able to attend any of his medical appointments in person out of security concerns. "I have not backed down from who I am since I was 13 years old, and I do not plan on doing so anytime soon."

Anna Caudill, a children's disability advocate based in Nashville and one of the event organizers, adopted two disabled boys and spent a lot of time at the children's hospital. She said she worries that threats against the hospital will put patients and staff in danger. She noted that Boston Children's Hospital faced a bomb threat over mischaracterizations of its gender-affirming care program.

"I have lived through a hospital lockdown, and you'd never want to be in a lockdown with your child in the hospital when you are helpless to leave that room," Caudill said, adding that political leaders should know the danger of such threats. "They're experienced enough to know that when that (Boston) bomb threat was called in, there were children terrified in their hospital rooms, that chemo (therapy) was postponed, that ambulances were diverted."

The Nashville-based medical center announced earlier this month it was pausing surgeries for minors as it reviews new international recommendations for transgender patient care from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health.

In announcing the move, VUMC noted that it started its program in 2018 to address the high-risk transgender people face for mental and physical health issues. The organization also noted that, contrary to internet rumors, gender-affirming surgical procedures involving patients younger than 18 are quite rare − an average of five per year − and none involved patients younger than 16.

These were not genital procedures, VUMC said in announcing the move, made in a letter to Tennessee Rep. Jason Zachary, R-Knoxville.

"Contrary to some media reports, all were at least 16 years of age, none have received genital procedures and parental consent to these surgeries was obtained in all cases," VUMC's letter to Zachary states. "None of these surgeries have been paid for by state or federal funds; the revenues from this limited number of surgeries represent an immaterial percentage of VUMC's net operating revenue."

Medical associations have established standards for such care, which include parental consent and a comprehensive psychological evaluation. Hospitals and ethical guidelines also call for a well-documented history of gender dysphoria.

The AMA has warned states against banning gender-affirming procedures involving minors, saying: "We believe this legislation represents a dangerous governmental intrusion into the practice of medicine and will be detrimental to the health of transgender children across the country."

Frank Gluck is the health care reporter for The Tennessean. He can be reached at fgluck@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter at @FrankGluck.

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Gender-affirming care advocates blast 'lies' about Vanderbilt hospital