OPEN LETTER TO THE MAZZONI CENTER
Dr. Kathy Rumer. DO has employed a right-wing affiliated legal team to witch hunt her detractors, the majority of whom are her very own trans patients who are low income and don't possess the legal resources and means to defend themselves. Rumer’s legal team is Rogers Counsel formally Rogers Castor. This firm defended Trump after his impeachment as well as defended the Jan 6th rioters who attempted to overthrow the US Government. In light of this, Rumer's right-wing lawyers managed to intimidate one of the defendants into silence. This defendant was a patient of Dr. Rumer who had to undergo three emergency surgeries and must perform physical therapy on a daily basis as a result of Rumer's surgical work. Despite having proof that this patient was not the anonymous blogger that Rumer was after, This was not enough for Dr. Rumer. Kathy Rumer’s attorney coerced this patient to give up her deadname during a deposition under the threat of sanctions and later forced the patient to sign an agreement to never speak against Dr. Rumer at the threat of being dragged in front of a juried trial where this patient’s genitalia would be up for public scrutiny before a Trump appointed judge with a history of anti-LGBTQ stances. This is known because this patient spoke to us a week before her trial was set to occur. This patient was pro-se and had no legal means to defend herself against Rumer’s unethical SLAPP suit.
In a time when fascism is on the rise and Republicans and the right have made a national effort to roll back bodily autonomy and states are passing a litany of anti-trans laws, Rumer’s alignment with Rogers Counsel to silence her own patients is an affront. Dr. Rumer can not collude with registered republicans in order to harass the very patients she is supposed to advocate for. Dr. Rumer has no right to label herself as an “ally” or claim to be providing an “invaluable service to the trans community” as her practice has responded to critics in her google reviews. The Rumer v Doe case is nothing new, allegations of Rumer threatening her own patients, journalists, and even other GCS surgeons with legal action has been public knowledge for years.
Rumer's reckless and dangerous behavior goes beyond the Rumer V Doe case. Rumer has a history of endangering her own patients as Rumer and her team once ignored a patient's chart and prescribed medication which could have killed the patient. Rumer has also engaged in dangerous false advertising to which she even admitted to doing in one of the four medical malpractice lawsuits against her. Dr. Rumer’s website promises in bold print and verbatim:
“Dr. Rumer’s GRS technique does not require electrolysis or laser hair removal of the genital area before surgery and there is NO regrowth.”
Despite Dr. Rumer’s audacious claim about her technique, Rumer maintained in court that she couldn’t guarantee no hair regrowth. In addition to outrageous claims regarding her work, Rumer has even expressed her own transphobia in her advertising by using a stock photo of an “androgynous man” to advertise facial feminization surgery as if trans women are just some caricature to her. Rumer’s real surgical outcomes outside of her website have resulted in notable surgeons such as Dr. Jess Ting to speak out against Rumer. Jess Ting is known for performing revision surgeries on many of Dr. Rumer’s patients.
Furthermore, Dr. Rumer is infamous in the trans community and has a long standing reputation due to her poor/indifferent bedside manner, to using ableist and abusive language to gaslight her patients when there are complications to flat out ghosting her patient’s entirely. One of the most egregious examples is documented in an OUTFRONT magazine article where Kathy Rumer ignored a patient’s calls for days in regards to a “large thumb-sized piece of dead skin.” When Carlie and her mother did hear back from Rumer’s office, Rumer told them if it continued to cause discomfort to Carlie, that Carlie’s mother, a retired surgeon, could “cut off the hanging skin.” Dr. Rumer then proceeded to go on an unprofessional rant stating:
"‘I followed the WPATH guidelines on how to treat my patients. If you think you can do better, why don’t you just give her a vagina?’” Carlie recalls.
Carlie’s account of Dr. Rumer is not an isolated case. Instead of taking responsibility for her actions, Kathy will instead choose to call a patient and threaten to withhold vital post surgical care in exchange for removing an online review. The transcript of this phone call exists here and on a website called RealSelf where it was originally posted.
In conclusion, the lack of justice and accountability on the behalf of the medical community in regards to Dr. Rumer has been absolutely appalling. If Mazzoni Center is truly committed to the safety of its patients and trans affirming care then Mazzoni Center must act on the following:
1.) Mazzoni Center must issue a public statement condemning Dr. Rumer's depraved abuse of the legal system and her callous treatment of her own patients. The onus falls upon the Mazzoni Center as the clinic has a history of taking generous donations from Dr. Rumer and her practice.
2.) Mazzoni Center must never refer another patient to Dr. Rumer for gender affirming care ever again.
3.) Most Importantly: Dr. Rumer and her practice must never be allowed to set foot at the Trans Health Conference or any Mazzoni Center sponsored event ever again. Dr. Rumer’s fraternizing with Republican aligned law firms is a gross violation of her social contract with our community, therefore Dr. Rumer’s practice should never be allowed to exist in any trans friendly space again.
Despite this petition and a public outcry for Dr. Rumer to cease and desist, Kathy Rumer has remained silent and has doubled down on her litigation. This will not be swept under the rug, Rumer’s harmful practices against the trans community must be brought to light and Dr. Rumer and the individuals who knew and silently allowed this disgraceful behavior to continue for years must be held accountable. Justice is long past due, it is time to take back trans healthcare and create a safer environment for trans and gender non-confirming patients.
Contact the Mazzoni Center and tell them It's past time to #DropRumer