The Cleveland Clinic has agreed with the U.S. Department of Justice to stop providing gender-affirming care to minors — including puberty blockers and hormone therapy — treatments that major medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association, recognize as evidence-based and medically necessary for many transgender youth.

This decision didn't come from doctors. It came from federal pressure.

When a family is navigating a child's health, the people who belong in that conversation are parents, the young person, and their medical team — not prosecutors. For years, Cleveland Clinic was a trusted resource for Ohio families seeking compassionate, individualized care. Now, under threat of federal investigation, it has stepped back from that role entirely.

The consequences are real. The LGBT Community Center of Greater Cleveland said it best: "Restricting access to care does not make young people safer. It makes an already vulnerable population even more vulnerable." Transgender youth already face elevated rates of anxiety and depression. Removing access to care that helps them doesn't make the need disappear — it just leaves families with nowhere to turn.

Cleveland Clinic built its reputation on being a world-class medical institution that puts patients first. We're calling on its leadership to live up to that standard — to advocate publicly for the families it has abandoned, to support legal efforts to restore access to care in Ohio, and to recommit to the full spectrum of healthcare its LGBTQ+ patients need.

Families deserve the right to make healthcare decisions for their children in partnership with their doctors. That right shouldn't depend on which state you live in, or whether a hospital fears federal prosecution. Sign this petition to tell Cleveland Clinic: stand with your patients.