- American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is accused of promoting drugs-first policy for transgender youth
- Critics say the academy is stifling debate at leadership conference, which begins in Chicago on Thursday
- U.S. needs ‘rigorous systematic review’ like in Britain, Sweden and Finland, say pediatricians
- AAP defends its policies as evidence-based, widely accepted and best bet for vulnerable teens
- Polls show Americans are skeptical of AAP’s ‘gender-affirming’ model of care
America’s top child health authority is under fire for pushing the over-use of puberty-blockers and hormones on transgender youth, and for stifling debate over whether a non-drug therapy approach is better.
Critics say the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is blocking efforts to review its influential policy on ‘gender-affirming care’ for teens who identify as transgender at its leadership meet, which starts in Chicago on Thursday.
The AAP says its guidelines — to reinforce the gender a youth selects, including through gender-affirming drugs, hormones and eventually surgery — are evidence-based, widely supported and offer the best chances for a suicide-prone group.
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