California Attorney General Rob Bonta has filed a lawsuit against Rady Children’s Hospital over its decision to end gender-affirming medical care for patients under the age of 19.
Bonta argues the hospital’s decision violates California law and legally binding conditions tied to Rady’s merger with Children’s Hospital of Orange County. The merger agreement required the hospital to maintain gender-affirming care through 2034 unless it received approval from the Attorney General, Bonta said.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in San Diego Superior Court, quickly followed the hospital’s announcement it would stop providing that care starting this Friday.
“The Attorney General has been working on this issue around the attacks from the federal government for many, many months,” said Kathie Moehlig, executive director of TransFamily Support Services.
A spokesperson for Rady Children’s Hospital said its decision was driven by concerns about proposed federal actions that could result in cuts to Medicaid and Medicare funding for hospitals that provide this type of care.
“The Attorney General has asked for an injunction or a court order instructing Rady Children's to continue providing care while the lawsuit is pending,” said Megan Noor, an attorney with the Transgender Law Center.
Noor said hospitals across the country have been reacting to federal pressure.
“All that's happened so far have been subpoenas, which some hospitals have successfully fought in court,” Noor said. “And threats towards funding, but no concrete action has actually been taken, and so the compliance by the hospital systems is preemptive at this point.”
The announcement from Rady Children's has left families scrambling, with little guidance on how to continue care, Moehlig said.
“They're not even helping their patients with transferring care to another provider,” Moehlig said. “They're not giving them information of where else they can go. They're telling them to call my organization, and that we will do that. And we will.”
In a statement, Rady Children’s said it is reviewing the lawsuit.
