Judge blocks DOJ subpoena for Rhode Island gender-affirming care records

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A federal judge has blocked the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) from obtaining confidential records tied to minors who received gender-affirming care at Rhode Island Hospital.

According to court documents, the DOJ had subpoenaed records from Rhode Island’s largest hospital system providing gender-affirming care to minors, requesting birthdates, Social Security numbers, addresses, intake forms, guardian authorizations, and other medical records tied to patients treated over the past five years.

Federal Judge Mary McElroy ruled Wednesday that the subpoenas were too broad and raised serious concerns about how the information could be used.

The Justice Department argued the records were part of an investigation into possible fraud and the off-label use of puberty blockers and hormone therapy medications. Prosecutors also said they wanted to identify and interview children and families connected to the treatments.

In her ruling, McElroy pushed back against those arguments, writing that the federal government had publicly targeted gender-affirming care for minors and that the DOJ had “proven unworthy” of being trusted to fairly enforce the subpoenas.

The decision marks another setback for the Trump administration’s nationwide effort to obtain records related to transgender healthcare, with multiple federal courts across the country already limiting or blocking similar requests.

Gender-affirming care can include counseling, puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and other treatments intended to support a person’s gender identity. Major medical organizations continue to support access to such care for patients diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

The Rhode Island ruling comes as legal battles over transgender healthcare continue nationwide, with more than two dozen states now having restrictions or bans in place for minors receiving certain forms of gender-affirming treatment.