AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton stated Friday that his office will be investigating Dell Children's Medical Center to "uncover" whether the center has performed "gender transitioning" procedures.
In a press release, Paxton stated that a Request to Examine (RTE) has been issued to the medical center to "demand answers about the alleged activities," with the RTE seeking "to determine whether any state laws have been violated or any misrepresentations have been made to parents and patients."
“It is now alarmingly common for fringe activists to use their positions in medicine and health care to force experimental, life-altering procedures onto children,” Paxton said in the release. “Across the country, there are doctors and health care professionals who appear willing to sacrifice the long-term health of American children, all in service to the increasingly dangerous fad of ‘transgender’ extremism. It is deeply disturbing, and there is no place for it in Texas. Along these lines, there have been a number of recent reports about potentially illegal activity at Dell Children’s Medical Center, and this investigation aims to uncover the truth.”
Paxton's claim follows a heated debate in the Texas Legislature over Senate Bill 14, which aims to ban gender-affirming care for minors. On Tuesday, May 2, LGBTQ+ advocacy groups were kicked out of the Texas House for protesting when lawmakers were set to pass the bill.
During the protest, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers cleared out advocates and media personnel in the gallery. Troopers made two arrests during the protests. One person was charged with assault on a peace office, resisting arrest and disrupting a public meeting, while the other was arrested for assault by contact. The second person was released from jail shortly after.
The House is now poised to vote on SB 14 on Friday.
Friday morning, Dell Children's Medical Group responded to Paxton's claim on Twitter, saying:
"As advocates for the best possible care and treatment of minors, Dell Children's Medical Group takes seriously any allegations about the care provided in our clinics.
"Our organization prohibits surgery and prescribing hormone therapy for the treatment of gender dysphoria in children. While our pediatric and adolescent medicine clinics do not provide these interventions, we do provide a safe and welcoming place for children to receive other forms of primary care and treatment, including treatment of illness and injuries, well-baby visits and school physicals.
"We are conducting a thorough review of this situation. To the extent that care provided at our clinic may have been inconsistent with our organization's position on this important issue, we intend to take appropriate action."