The List of the ‘Best’ Children’s Hospitals is Out. Here’s Who’s Still Providing Child Sex Changes

In the wake of President Trump’s executive order on gender ideology, as well as mounting legal pressure from both federal and state governments, many children’s hospitals have shuttered their pediatric gender clinics this year. 

However, recalcitrant children’s hospitals remain – many of which are among the most prestigious hospitals in the United States.

Today, U.S. News published its “Best Children’s Hospitals 2025-2026 Honor Roll,” a list of the top 10 hospitals in the country according to their rankings across multiple specialties.

Several of these hospitals are still clearly providing so-called “gender-affirming care” – such as puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, and/or surgical procedures – to patients under the age of 18.

Children’s Hospital Colorado and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) advertise their pediatric gender clinics on their website. 

For others, meanwhile, the truth is somewhat murky. According to the Voice of San Diego, Rady Children’s Hospital is still providing sex change interventions to children, but has removed much of its content regarding these services from its website.

Boston Children’s Hospital confirmed its belief in “a gender-affirmative model of care, which supports transgender and gender diverse youth” in July, though a lawsuit alleged that the hospital had canceled appointments for “gender-affirming care” earlier this year.

Seattle Children’s Hospital maintains a webpage advertising “gender-affirming care” to minors, but reporting from April indicates that the hospital is not actively providing these procedures to patients.

Conversely, three of the 10 “best” hospitals (Cincinnati Children’s, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and Texas Children’s Hospital) are in states that have banned child sex change interventions.

Children’s Hospital Los Angeles shuttered its pediatric gender clinic in July; moreover, Dr. Johanna Olson-Kennedy, who previously helmed the center, is no longer employed by the hospital. Last year, The New York Times reported that Olson-Kennedy had initially refused to publish the results of a multi-million dollar, federally-funded study that found that “puberty blockers did not lead to mental health improvements” in children; Olson-Kennedy’s decision was due to fears that the results could undermine the argument for “gender-affirming care.” 

The results of the study were finally released as a preprint in May, finding that children’s depression symptoms and emotional health “did not change significantly over 24 months” of being on puberty blockers. 

And Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C. is no longer providing so-called “gender-affirming care” to minors.

This list demonstrates that, while many children’s hospitals have done the right thing and ceased providing dangerous, unsupported medical interventions to children, there is still much work to be done.