Parent Kristen Clifford says NYU ended care under political pressure
Kristen Clifford, mother of two trans kids, says NYU Langone ended health care for her teenager due to political pressure. She says DOJ requested their private records, NYU paid over $8 million and stopped medically necessary care, and puberty blocker implants are hard to access due to insurance coding; she urges the city to attract and support affirming practitioners.
Hi, my name is Kristen Clifford and my pronouns are she, her, and I am the proud mom of two trans kids, one of whom is still a minor.
NYU Langone ended healthcare for my teenager, not because of medical science, but because of political pressure from the Trump administration.
Our family's private medical records have been requested by Trump's Department of Justice.
We have that injunction for now.
NYU's recent deal with Trump's Department of Justice is a shakedown, and NYU paid over $8 million and stopped medically necessary health care.
This is the environment that we are all living in.
I am so grateful that both of my children were able to receive excellent gender-affirming health care at NYU, and especially puberty blockers, and especially these puberty blocker implants.
Having that time is so important to early teenagers.
I cannot stress this enough.
And puberty blockers.
and especially the implant, has been one of the things that parents struggle to access the most in the past few years.
I do believe some of it is because of the way that it has been coded by insurance companies, where it used to be in office and now it is coded as surgery.
And if there's anything that the city can do, we would appreciate that.
Our care was taken away twice.
After the first time, it was restored.
And then again, as I was protesting in Washington, D.C., some of us were arrested.
And as I got out of jail for protesting to gender-affirming care, I got a message saying that NYU had cut my child's gender-affirming care.
We need the city and state to do everything they can to support trans kids.
My children's mental health was greatly improved by gender-affirming care.
I have watched them blossom and grow and become their true selves.
The fascist dictatorial federal government is attacking our children and our families.
The political environment is harming our children, causing anxiety, fear, and despair.
And parents know what it is like to try to keep our kids alive.
And not all of our kids make it.
A teenager in my neighborhood in Queens committed suicide by jumping off the Queens
a few years ago.
They had been bullied for being trans.
We need to do everything in our power to support trans kids, especially in light of the harmful federal actions.
And we need to step in.
The city needs to step in and provide gender-affirming care.
One of my questions for the city is how can the city attract
Thank you.
Even get tissues.
How can the city attract and support more gender-affirming care practitioners?
This is something that we need as a sanctuary city.
Gender-affirming care is life-saving care because I've seen that up close in my own home.
Trans kids need all the support they can get to become trans adults.
And parents need support.
So many parents are scared to reach out because of all of the anti-trans rhetoric and hatred.
They're scared to get help for their families.
This resource map is really important because we share information in a whisper network.
But then if we have this research map, this resource map, we are all worried about the providers and about the safety and about families who, families don't come forward because they're afraid of being doxxed.
I'm grateful, I'm so grateful to all the people who are here today supporting trans youth.
And I support
All that New York City can do to do gender-affirming health care access.
Thank you.