Maine is again in the national spotlight because of transgender athletes.
But not in a bad way. At least, directly.
In Sunday’s episode of his HBO show “Last Week Tonight,” comedian John Oliver took a look at President Donald Trump’s six-week-old pressure campaign against the state over the continued inclusion of transgender athletes in scholastic sports.
Maine has been thrust into the crosshairs of Trump since he signed an executive order in February attempting to ban transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports.
Under the Maine Human Rights Act, it is illegal to discriminate against someone on the basis of gender identity, a protection that was extended in 2021 to explicitly prohibit that in education. The Maine Principals’ Association, which oversees scholastic sports for 151 public and private schools, previously had a policy permitting transgender athletes to compete on the team that corresponds to their gender identity. Since 2021, the association has directed schools to adhere to the Maine Human Rights Act.
During his segment, Oliver highlighted reporting from the Bangor Daily News and ProPublica that found there are currently more federal agencies — six — investigating Maine for alleged Title IX violations (based on an untested legal theory running counter to court precedent) than transgender athletes — two.
“Two, and I know you might be thinking, ‘OK, but in Maine, two kids is like half the kids, right?’ But it’s actually not. They’ve got more,” Oliver said.
To put that into further context, about 45,000 students participated in high school sports in Maine during the 2023-24 school year, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. (That does count students who participated in two or more sports multiple times.)
So transgender athletes account for only about 0.004 percent of all Maine high school athletes.
And those numbers aren’t any bigger over time.
Between 2013 and 2021, the Maine Principals’ Association, which oversees scholastic sports for 151 public and private schools, heard from 56 trans students wishing to participate on a high school sports team consistent with their gender identity, only four of whom were trans girls.
At the collegiate level, the University of Maine System had no transgender athletes competing on any women’s team, and the system is following the rules set by the NCAA, which changed its policy toward transgender athletes after Trump’s executive order.
Trump singled out Maine during a Republican governors meeting in Washington during which he floated withholding federal funding from the state if it doesn’t comply with his executive order. The next day Trump made that threat during an event at the White House and singled out Gov. Janet Mills, who was in attendance. In a heated exchange, Trump pressed Mills on the state’s policy toward transgender athletes and the governor told the president that she would “see you in court.”
“You know what, I take back everything mean that I have ever said about you, Maine. Like that you’re lobster-stuffed lighthouse perverts that the rest of the Northeast loves to forget. I still broadly think that to be true, but I’m not going to be saying it out loud anymore,” Oliver said.
During the segment, Oliver acknowledged the differing physical capacities of male and female athletes, but noted that it’s not as clear cut as the current public debate makes it seem.
The performance advantage of men over women can vary greatly depending on the sport and event, pointing to the male advantage in swimming during the 50-meter is 13.2 percent, compared with 5.7 percent in the 1500-meter freestyle. So that advantage is far from immutable.
He also highlighted the paucity of research into the performance of transgender athletes, which has been limited by the small sample sizes, including two studies concerning a single athlete.
Further, governing bodies for certain sports have strict policies that can require athletes to have undergone hormone therapy for two years before being permitted to commit.
While influenza remains the top concern for Maine public health experts, other viruses are also currently circulating, including norovirus and COVID-19.
“Influenza is clearly the main event,” said Dr. Cheryl Liechty, a MaineHealth infectious disease specialist. “The curve in terms of the rise of influenza cases was really steep.”
Maine reported 1,343 flu cases for the week ending Jan. 3, an uptick from the 1,283 cases recorded the previous week, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Hospitalizations increased to 147 from 108 during the same time periods.
“I hope the peak is now,” Liechty said, “but I’m not really sure.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Friday that all of New England, except for Vermont, is currently experiencing “very high” levels of influenza. Vermont is in the “moderate” category.
“What we are seeing, overwhelmingly, is the flu,” said Andrew Donovan, associate vice president of infection prevention for Northern Light Health. “We are seeing both respiratory and gastrointestinal viruses in our patients.”
Norovirus also appears to be circulating, although due to its short duration and because it’s less severe than the flu, public health data on the illness — which causes gastrointestinal symptoms that typically resolve within a few days — is not as robust.
“Norovirus is the gastrointestinal scourge of New England winters and cruise ships,” Liechty said.
According to surveillance data at wastewater treatment plants in Portland, Bangor and Lewiston, norovirus levels detected in those communities are currently “high.” The treatment plants participate in WastewaterSCAN, which reports virus levels in wastewater through a program run by Stanford University and Emory University.
Dr. Genevieve Whiting, a Westbrook pediatrician and secretary of the Maine chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said viruses are prevalent right now, especially the flu and norovirus.
“For my patients right now, it’s a rare encounter that I hear everyone in a family has been healthy,” Whiting said. “I’ve had families come in and say their entire family has had norovirus. Several of my patients have had ER visits for suspected norovirus, where they needed IV fluids because they were dehydrated.”
Both Liechty and Whiting said they are seeing less respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, likely because there has been good uptake of the new RSV vaccine, which is recommended for older people and those who are pregnant. The vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023.
“The RSV vaccine has been a real success, as RSV was a leading cause of hospitalizations for babies,” Whiting said.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases increased to 610 in the final week of 2025, compared to 279 the previous week. Influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations are available at primary care, pharmacies and clinics across the state.
“If you haven’t gotten your flu shot yet,” Liechty said, “you should beat a hasty path to get your shot.”
Defensemen Max Wanner was re-assigned to the Maine Mariners from the Providence Bruins on Thursday. Defenseman Michael Underwood was also re-assigned to Maine.
Wanner, 22, was acquired by the Boston Bruins when they traded Trent Federic to Edmonton last March. He played in 15 games for the AHL Providence Bruins at the end of last season, and seven this season.
Underwood returns for his second stint with the Mariners. He appeared in 67 games with Maine last season.
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