On January 1, 2026, a legal complaint was filed by a group of U.S. federal employees against the Trump administration concerning a new policy that will remove coverage for gender-affirming care in federal health insurance programs. This policy, announced by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in August, specifically excludes coverage for medical interventions aimed at modifying an individual's sex traits.

The complaint, submitted by the Human Rights Campaign on behalf of the employees, asserts that the denial of coverage for gender-affirming care is a form of sex-based discrimination. Kelley Robinson, President of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, stated that the policy is not merely a financial decision but rather an attempt to marginalize transgender individuals and their families within the federal workforce.

The complaint has been filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and includes testimonies from four federal employees from various departments, including the State Department and Health and Human Services, who would be adversely affected by the policy. One example cited is a Postal Service employee whose daughter requires puberty blockers and potentially hormone replacement therapy for her diagnosed gender dysphoria, which would not be covered under the new policy.

Furthermore, the Trump administration has previously implemented measures to restrict access to gender-affirming care for transgender individuals, particularly minors. In December, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services proposed regulations that would prevent Medicare and Medicaid funding for hospitals providing such care to children. Senior officials, including Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have referred to gender-affirming care for minors as 'malpractice,' a stance that contradicts the recommendations of major medical organizations such as the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics, which advocate for gender-affirming treatments as essential healthcare.