The Federal Trade Commission and four state attorneys general sued the World Professional Association for Transgender Health on Wednesday, alleging the organization deceived parents into buying pediatric medical transition services by making false and unsubstantiated health claims.
Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska and Texas joined the federal lawsuit, filed in Fort Worth, Texas.
The FTC alleges WPATH misled families about the medical consensus, necessity, safety and effectiveness of puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries for minors who expressed distress about their biological sex.
“Today, the FTC filed a lawsuit against WPATH alleging that the organization made false and unsubstantiated claims regarding the necessity, effectiveness and safety of puberty blockers, hormones and sex-change surgeries,” FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said. “Children, but especially their parents, must have complete and truthful information when making decisions to purchase medical services.”
The complaint alleges WPATH labeled nearly every pediatric transition service as “medically necessary” despite the absence of supporting evidence, a designation that maximizes the likelihood insurers will cover the procedures.
Clinicians affiliated with WPATH told parents to ask themselves whether they “would rather have a live daughter or a dead son,” according to the complaint. The FTC states there is no competent and reliable scientific evidence that pediatric transition reduces suicide risk.
In 2022, WPATH removed all mention of age limitations for breast amputation and genital surgery from its official “Standards of Care” document. The complaint states that decision was not based on medical evidence.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said WPATH “illegally promotes irreversible, life-altering ‘transitioning’ procedures to kids as safe and necessary.”
“We will not allow WPATH or any other organization to illegally promote or perform dangerous ‘transitioning’ procedures on our kids that leave them with permanent trauma and lifelong health consequences,” Paxton said.
Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers said WPATH has “long represented itself as the final authority for the gender-related treatment of children, advancing profit-driven ideology unsupported by science.”
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird called WPATH’s recommendations “based on politics and ideology.”
“Parents and children deserve better,” Bird said.
The FTC opened its investigation into WPATH alongside the Endocrine Society and the American Academy of Pediatrics in January, seeking internal records, financial information and documents related to transgender care guidance. All three organizations sued to block the probe and were granted a temporary injunction last month.
WPATH called Wednesday’s complaint baseless and said it expects the court to find the administration is “acting out of pure retaliation.” The organization said the FTC “has no place interfering with the process of individualized medical decision-making.”
The first pediatric medical transition clinic in the United States opened in 2007. By 2015, at least 41 such clinics were operating across the country, many inside major children’s hospitals.
