Do No Harm Report Debunks Claim That State Restrictions on Pediatric Sex-Rejecting Interventions Increase Adolescent Suicide Rates

Salt Lake City, UT: September 17, 2026 – Today, Do No Harm released a study finding no evidence for the widespread and alarmist claim that state prohibitions on surgeries, puberty blockers, or cross-sex hormones for gender-dysphoric minors increase suicide rates.

The study, titled “The Effect of State Bans on Gender Interventions for Minors on Teen Suicide Rates,” examines the claim that state bans on so-called gender-affirming care for minors lead to spikes in suicides. Employing three distinct analytical models, Do No Harm found no evidence to support the claim.

“The alarmist claim that protecting children from sex-rejecting procedures increases suicide is false,” said Jay Greene, Director of Research at Do No Harm. “We examined the evidence in a first-of-its-kind study of how teen suicide rates were affected by states adopting policies restricting so-called gender-affirming care for children. No matter how you examine the data, the result is consistently clear: These state policies did not increase teen suicide rates. Medical practice and policy must be grounded in evidence, not emotionally manipulative talking points. That principle is all the more critical when it’s a matter of children’s health and well-being.”

Do No Harm’s Three Models:

• Difference-In-Difference Model: a statistical method comparing trends across states before and after policy changes. After accounting for national suicide trends, state economic conditions, and suicide rates among young adults, Do No Harm found a 0.3-percent reduction in suicides among 15–19-year-olds, a statistically insignificant change.
• Callaway and Sant’Anna Difference-In-Difference Model:a newer statistical method designed to provide more reliable estimates when states adopt policies at different times. Do No Harm’s results were unchanged, showing no impact of bans on gender interventions for minors on suicide rates among 15–19-year-olds.
• National Time-Series Model:analyzed monthly national suicide data among 13–17-year-olds to assess whether expanding prohibitions on sex-rejecting interventions for minors affected youth suicide rates. After controlling for age-adjacent suicide trends, seasonality, economic conditions, and national time trends, Do No Harm found no relationship between these policy changes and teen suicide rates.

Do No Harm’s study also debunks the flawed research cited by activists, media, and lawmakers to justify the suicide myth and claiming that “gender-affirming care” is “lifesaving.” These studies have profound methodological limitations and depend on unreliable evidence.

Read Do No Harm’s study here.

Do No Harm, established in April 2022, has rapidly gained recognition and made significant strides in its mission to safeguard healthcare from ideological threats. It has over 50,000 members, including doctors, nurses, physicians, and concerned citizens across all 50 states and 26 countries.