Trump administration seeks transgender patient records from NYU Langone

The U.S. Attorney's Office in the Northern District of Texas has issued a subpoena for the medical records of trans youth who received gender-affirming care from NYU Langone Health, a New York-based hospital system, since 2020.

NYU Langone notified patients of the grand jury subpoena on Monday and said it was one of several health institutions to receive it. Under the New York State Shield Law, hospitals must alert patients when they receive requests for legally protected health records, like those pertaining to gender-affirming care.

The subpoena also requested the names of individual providers at the hospital who provided gender-affirming care to youth, according to the hospital’s message to patients. NYU Langone did not return The Advocate’s request for comment on whether they would hand over the records, but acknowledged that the news might be unsettling.

“We understand that these developments may be concerning to our patients, providers, and others,” the message reads. “Please know that NYU Langone takes the privacy of your protected health information very seriously, and we are evaluating our response to the subpoena.”

The subpoena comes amid President Donald Trump’s effort to reduce access to gender-affirming care for minors and to obtain medical records from health facilities that provide these services to youth.

Earlier this year, a federal court denied the Justice Department access to similar records from a gender-affirming care provider in the Washington, D.C., area. Reuters previously reported that at least six other efforts to obtain medical records related to trans youth care were challenged in courts across the country last year.

Those efforts have generally failed because personal health information, particularly involving minors, is subject to strong legal protections. Past subpoenas sought records that could include names, addresses, diagnoses, and treatment information.

Related: NYU Langone Hospital ends gender-affirming care program for trans teens after Trump funding threats

A message issued to patients by NYU Langone Health on May 11, 2026.Photo Courtesy of the Christopher Street Project

Related: Mount Sinai Hospital drops gender-affirming care for trans teens, leaving New York families worried

Why a new subpoena was issued from Texas is currently unclear. But Tyler Hack, founder of a pro-trans rights political action committee called the Christopher Street Project, said it may be a sign of “judge shopping,” where opponents of trans rights repeat legal attacks in a more conservative court “to seek a favorable ruling from that court.”

“They're using every law at their disposal to attack trans kids, distort the rules and change the game to seek a favorable ruling, because they're not winning on merit,” Hack told The Advocate. “If they are coming for trans kids and our patient privacy, they're going to come for everyone else.”

Related: New York AG orders major medical center to resume gender-affirming care for youth

NYU Langone’s gender-affirming care program has been under the spotlight for months. The hospital system was one of several nationwide to cut off trans youth from gender-affirming care after the Trump administration threatened to revoke federal funding from providers.

After a federal court ruled that the Trump administration could not force hospitals to stop providing the services, NYU Langone did not answer whether it would resume care for trans youth patients.