31 January 2025 – Medical experts, health bodies and LGBTIQ+ groups have cautiously welcomed the Federal Government’s announcement it will review the treatment guidelines for trans and gender diverse young people.
But they said the process must be led by the experts, remain free of political interference and not block continued care across the country.
Health Minister Mark Butler on Friday announced a review of the Australian Standards of Care and Treatment Guidelines for Trans and Gender Diverse Children and Adolescents in Australia, to be carried out by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).
He also said this vital area of health care was no place to “play politics” and called on the Queensland government to suspend its review into the state’s model of care.
Nicky Bath, CEO LGBTIQ+ Health Australia:
“LHA cautiously welcomes the Government’s announcement today that the NHMRC will be undertaking a review of the Australian Standards of Care for the Treatment Guidelines for Trans and Gender Diverse Children and Adolescents.
“The review is in line with actions within the National Action Plan for the Health and Wellbeing of LGBTIQA+ People 2025 – 2035, has been requested by clinicians and provides an opportunity to end individual jurisdictional reviews that can disrupt best practice treatments as we have seen in Queensland.
“The review will be of the highest standard in the hands of the NHMRC and while it will be challenging to see this occurring, now is the time to ensure that we contribute to the process, hold it to account and for the best practice gender affirming care that we know works continue to be delivered to trans and gender diverse young people across Australia.
“Gender affirming care saves lives and nobody wants to see trans and gender diverse young people unable to access the lifesaving medications that they need.”
Professor Ashleigh Lin, President of AusPATH (the Australian Professional Association for Trans Health):
“AusPATH is unwavering in its commitment to ensuring that children and young people in Australia receive the highest quality gender affirming care.
“Our clinicians are internationally recognised in paediatric gender medicine, and we will continue to champion best-practice, evidence-based care.
“We acknowledge the need to update the Australian Standards of Care in line with the extensive body of research conducted since the guidelines were developed and see Minister Butler’s inclusion of people with lived experience, as well as expert researchers, and frontline clinicians as crucial to this process.
“AusPATH will fight to ensure that the voices of experts and the needs of trans young people remain central to the delivery of safe, evidence-based healthcare.”
Jeremy Wiggins, CEO of Transcend Australia:
“Transcend Australia stands firm in our position that Australian trans young people deserve equitable and continued access to gender affirming healthcare.
“We trust in the evidence that gender affirming healthcare produces positive benefits and we look forward to contributing to the update of national guidelines with the NHMRC.”
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown:
“We need to support trans young people based on the best available evidence – not on politics.
“Australia has some of the world’s leading clinicians and experts in transgender healthcare and they work hard to ensure it is informed by the best and most up-to-date scientific evidence.
“This issue should never be an ideological debate or a political football. Real every day Australian families are at the centre of this. We are talking about parents who simply want what every parent wants - for their children to grow up happy and healthy.”
Ms Brown backed Mr Butler’s calls for the Queensland government to suspend its review and allow the national process to proceed. She also called on the state government to resume access to hormone treatments.
“This is basic medical care that has a life changing impact on the very small number of young people who need it. If care like this was denied in any other context or to any other group of the community people would be outraged and rightly so.
“Politicians should not be in the business of making medical decisions for young people and families they have never met and whose experience of life are unimaginable to most of them.”
Earlier this week the Queensland Government announced it was suspending access to puberty blockers and hormones while a review of the evidence was underway.
New patients in the state who under the age of 18 won’t be able to access hormone treatments in the public health system until the government considers its findings.
Only last year, separate reviews in NSW and Queensland found that practices in both states were safe and evidence based.
Media contacts: Tara Ravens 0408 898 154, tara.ravens@equalityaustralia.org.au and Emily Mulligan 0411 207 633 emily.mulligan@equalityaustralia.org.au
