A major gender-transition clinic for minors based at USC’s Children’s Hospital Los Angeles will cease youth-focused services on July 22. The decision follows a legal and financial review triggered by the Trump administration’s executive order calling such treatments “chemical and surgical mutilation.” The closure disrupts care for thousands of young patients and ignites debate over federal influence on state healthcare.
The Center for Transyouth Health and Development, led by USC Keck School Professor Johanna Olson‑Kennedy, is among the country’s largest youth gender-transition clinics. After a “thorough legal and financial assessment,” administrators cited federal hostility toward such clinics, California’s budget strain, and a worsening funding landscape as factors forcing the shutdown.
This closure comes less than a year after CHLA halted hormone therapy for under‑19 patients following Trump’s order, sparking statewide protests and a California AG warning that the move violated anti‑discrimination laws. Policymakers had temporarily restored those services—yet surgical options for minors were never resumed.
Protesters continue to voice outrage. Demonstrators at USC argue the clinic provided crucial care and community support. One nonbinary 16‑year‑old said the center “meant the world” and credited it with saving their life. AP reports the young patient joined ongoing rallies demanding continued access to gender-affirming care.
In a landscape marked by partisan conflict, USC’s pivot spotlights ongoing tension between professional discretion and ideological activism in youth medicine.
