Virginia hospitals keep legal trans youth care closed and families in the dark

As hospitals nationwide navigate federal investigations into their gender-affirming care programs, three major hospitals in Virginia are silent on whether they plan to reopen their programs to minors.

Under President Donald Trump’s second term, Children’s Hospital of the Kings and Daughters, Children’s Hospital of Richmond and University of Virginia Health Children’s Hospital have each closed their gender-affirming care programs to minors. That care remains legal in the state. The hospitals have not said publicly whether the programs will reopen to youth, and some Virginia families and advocates say they have been left in the dark.

The Advocate reached out to media representatives for the three hospitals for comment. A spokesperson for Children’s Hospital of the Kings and Daughters told The Advocate over email that the hospital does not provide hormone therapy or puberty blockers to minors seeking gender-affirming care.

Related: Major Virginia medical center stops gender-affirming care for minors after Trump’s executive order

“We continue to provide allowable mental health services and consultation to children within our community affected by these federal decisions. CHKD has never provided surgical treatment for gender-affirming care,” the spokesperson wrote.

Meanwhile, representatives for Children’s Hospital of Richmond and UVA Health Children’s Hospital pointed The Advocate to earlier, broader hospital communications announcing the closure of services.

“While we must end Gender-Affirming Care services for youth under age 19, our doors remain open to all patients and their families for all other health care needs,” read a July 2025 statement from Children’s Hospital of Richmond.

“UVA Health is accepting new patients for gender-affirming care who are adults the age of nineteen and above. UVA Health may refer younger patients to providers outside of UVA Health to help them access the care they need,” a webpage on the UVA Health website reads. “This reaffirms our commitment to offer our patients the best care we can, in accordance with state and federal law.”

Related: Scholars from Virginia university that ended trans youth care publish research on transphobia’s harms

Both hospitals also provide additional resources and information about gender-affirming care on their websites.

Gender-affirming care refers to health care that helps an individual express their gender identity. For minors, that often refers to counseling, puberty blockers, which delay the development of sex-based characteristics resulting from puberty, and hormone therapy. Major medical associations widely regard treatments like these as safe and beneficial for transgender patients.

The lingering uncertainty over gender-affirming care access at the three hospitals was first reported by Charlotte Rene Woods, a journalist with the nonprofit newsroom Virginia Mercury. Woods reported that the cuts to care have weighed heavily on trans youth, and their advocates and families.

“I thought Virginia would be a safe place for me and my daughter. Instead, I am heartbroken, tired, and scared,” said Kristin Chapman, the mother of a trans child, in a statement to Virginia Mercury.

Related: Richmond nonprofit He She Ze and We expands support network as transgender Virginians face barriers to care

Chapman, who moved to Virginia in 2023 for better access to gender-affirming care, was one of several plaintiffs in a multi-state lawsuit with the American Civil Liberties Union over the closure of gender-affirming services to minors, Virginia Mercury reported.

The Virginia hospitals are among many health facilities nationwide to close or scale back gender-affirming care programs for minors since Trump took office in January 2025. That follows the Trump administration's investigations into providers nationwide, subpoenas for patient records and internal communications, and threats to revoke federal funding from hospitals that offered youth these services.

Since then, some hospitals have gone a step further, striking deals with the Trump administration to keep their programs closed and pay penalties to the federal government, with several citing pressure from the administration’s investigations.

None of the three Virginia hospitals answered The Advocate's question about whether they have been approached about such deals or would consider accepting one.