Montana to probe nation's leading pediatrics group for claim puberty blockers are 'reversible'

FIRST ON FOX: Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen is launching an investigation into a leading pediatrics organization over its “gender-affirming” care policy statement that claims treating children with puberty blockers is reversible.

The civil investigative demand (CID) comes a little over a month since attorneys general from Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and Utah sent a letter to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), accusing the organization of abandoning “its commitment to sound medical judgment.”

“Puberty blockers can have serious and irreversible consequences for children, but AAP appears to ignore those consequences and instead promotes them as ‘reversible’. That’s unacceptable and could be a violation of Montana law,” Knudsen told Fox News Digital in a statement.

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“The information AAP provides must be accurate and based in scientific fact as parents and medical professionals rely on them for guidance in making healthcare decisions for children,” the AG added.

The 2018 AAP policy states that “Gonadotrophin-releasing hormones have been used to delay puberty since the 1980s for central precocious puberty.”

“These reversible treatments can also be used in adolescents who experience gender dysphoria to prevent development of secondary sex characteristics and provide time up until 16 years of age for the individual and the family to explore gender identity, access psychosocial supports, develop coping skills, and further define appropriate treatment goals,” the statement reads.

Gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues are the most widely used class of drugs for puberty blocking. Regular use of these puberty blockers prevents the body from producing testosterone and estrogen.

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Among the demands in the CID, Knudsen seeks all documents related to the AAP’s 2018 Policy Statement on transgender medical care, including communications regarding its impact on AAP products. The office is also asking for records connected to the pause on the publication of “Pediatric Collections: Gender-Affirming Care,” pending a review of the 2018 policy.

Additionally, Knudsen is seeking details about the review process for the 2018 policy, including the individuals involved. The investigation seeks to clarify the AAP’s decision-making processes and its interactions with stakeholders regarding input on policy reviews.

A transgender flag unfurled on a pole.  (Getty Images)

The AAP will also be required to respond to a September letter from attorneys general across the country that called on the organization to rescind its support for transgender medical care – such as puberty blockers and surgeries – on children. 

Last year, the AAP recommitted its pledge to support so-called “gender-affirming care” and expanded its guidelines for pediatricians to “ensure young people get the reproductive and gender-affirming care they need and are seen, heard and valued as they are,” AAP CEO Mark Del Monte said at the time.

“The AAP opposes any laws or regulations that discriminate against transgender and gender-diverse individuals, or that interfere in the doctor-patient relationship,” the AAP wrote in a news release.

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A person displays trans pride flags during the NYC Pride March in New York on Sunday, June 25, 2023. (Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

AAP has published several reports on reaffirming transgender youth in their preferred gender identities. In January, the AAP published a report titled, “Prohibition of Gender-Affirming Care as a Form of Child Maltreatment: Reframing the Discussion,” which claimed many bills aimed at restricting transgender treatments for children lead to poor mental health. 

The AAP, along with prominent medical organizations such as the American Medical Association, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the World Health Organization, advocates for providing transgender treatments to minors.

Knudsen’s letter comes as transgender surgical procedures and hormone treatments for children has become a culture war issue in the 2024 election. According to unsealed documents published over the summer, health officials in the Biden administration successfully pressured the World Professional Association for Transgender Health to omit the age limit in its guidelines for transgender surgical procedures for adolescents. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the AAP for comment.