![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEC_258546558-01ef.jpg\")
\n\t\tTrans and non-binary people often face years-long waits for gender-affirming healthcare in the UK (Picture: Shutterstock\/Metro.co.uk)<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tTrans and non-binary people often face years-long waits for gender-affirming healthcare in the UK (Picture: Shutterstock\/Metro.co.uk)<\/p>\n
Hundreds of trans and non-binary people have been refused gender-affirming healthcare from their NHS GPs over the last few months, according to a campaign group.<\/p>\n
TransActual says at least 382 trans people have had their hormone replacement therapy (HRT)<\/a> prescriptions refused by GPs from January 2024, when they began collecting the data, to May 2025.<\/p>\n Of them, 102 had a letter from an NHS <\/a>gender<\/a> clinic asking a GP to prescribe the treatment, while 293 had already been taking hormones.<\/p>\n Doctors have also refused to renew pre-existing HRT plans, with 126 trans people reporting<\/a> this to TransActual<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t\t It comes after one of Europe\u2019s top equality officials said the government\u2019s treatment of trans people<\/a> could breach their human rights.<\/p>\n HRT for trans people involves taking hormones to spur physical features like beards or breast growth. If a trans person stops HRT then some effects, such as hair growth and muscle mass, will reverse.<\/p>\n Metro <\/strong>spoke with four trans and non-binary people whose GPs have refused them HRT, only speaking on condition of anonymity out of fear of losing their healthcare.<\/p>\n \u2018I used to pay \u00a3200 for HRT \u2013 now I pay nearly \u00a32,000\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tJoin Metro’s LGBTQ+ community on WhatsApp\t\t\t<\/p>\n With thousands of members from all over the world, our vibrant LGBTQ+ WhatsApp channel<\/a> is a hub for all the latest news and important issues that face the LGBTQ+ community.<\/p>\n Simply\u00a0click on this link<\/a><\/strong>, select \u2018Join Chat\u2019 and you\u2019re in! Don’t forget to turn on notifications!<\/p>\n Jordan<\/a>*, an application developer in the West Midlands, had been on a shared care agreement for three years when her GP ended it last October. <\/p>\n In a letter seen by Metro<\/strong>, the practice said: \u2018Given the complexity and unique medical considerations involved in hormone therapy, we believe it is crucial for such prescribing and monitoring responsibilities to remain under the direct oversight of a specialist with specific training and experience in transgender healthcare.\u2019<\/p>\n Jordan, 25, said this came without any warning. \u2018It wasn\u2019t a refusal to get involved, as they framed it. It was an active choice to cut me off,\u2019 she said.<\/p>\n \t\t \u2018If I hadn\u2019t been able to shoulder the cost of going fully private, I would\u2019ve been left without access to the hormone therapy I\u2019ve relied on for years.\u2019<\/p>\n While on the agreement, Jordan paid around \u00a3200 for HRT. Privately, she pays:<\/p>\n \t\t\t\tAccessing HRT as a trans person in the UK\t\t\t<\/p>\n HRT is available on the NHS by first seeing a Gender Identity Clinic\u00a0(GIC) \u2013 the average waiting time for a first appointment is 25 years, according to news outlet QueerAF<\/a>.<\/p>\n People can also go through a private clinic<\/a>, or have a shared care agreement<\/a> drawn up where the private gender specialist will review the patient\u2019s care, while the GP will prescribe medication.<\/p>\n Jordan and her mum met with her GP, but during the consultation, the doctor referred to her as a \u2018guy\u2019 and shrugged off her situation as \u2018political\u2019.<\/p>\n \u2018She made me feel like an inconvenience; she wanted me out the door,\u2019 Jordan claimed. \u2018We entered the appointment searching for answers but left feeling powerless as if there was nowhere left to turn.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018Trans people are expected to navigate endless admin, inconsistent care and dehumanising treatment just to access HRT that cis people get without question,\u2019 she added.<\/p>\n \u2018We shouldn\u2019t have to fight this hard just to stay on the medication we\u2019ve already been safely taking for years.\u2019<\/p>\n In August, the practice apologised to Jordan about the withdrawal of the shared care agreement, as well as the meeting with the GP. <\/p>\n \t\t In a letter seen by Metro<\/strong>, a practice representative said that the doctor\u2019feels genuine remorse for any upset she may have caused\u2019.<\/p>\n The letter added: \u2018While we have prescribed hormone treatments in the past, we had to carefully review the shared care request from your clinic. Unfortunately, it was determined that continuing with those prescriptions was not suitable.<\/p>\n \u2018I understand this decision was difficult, and it has been shared with you and your consultant for clarity.\u2019<\/p>\n Jordan said she has since switched to a different clinic which, though it cannot offer her a shared care agreement, will be happy to work with an NHS GIC once she begins treatment there.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019m almost four years into [the waiting list],\u2019 she said, however, \u2018and I\u2019m expected to wait another seven years more.<\/p>\n \u2018As long as I can continue to afford it, I\u2019ll probably continue with private for the foreseeable future.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018My GP laughed in my face\u2019<\/p>\n Avery*, a non-binary person in their 30s, has encountered issues with their GP because they don\u2019t have a shared care agreement.<\/p>\n The shop worker has been on the waiting list for healthcare for five years. To get by, they have turned to DIY<\/a> HRT \u2013 purchasing hormone pills, patches or injections without a prescription.<\/p>\n \t\t In 2023, Avery told their south west England GP that they had been self-administering and asked for a bridging prescription<\/a>, a temporary order of HRT for people on a waiting list.<\/p>\n The GP refused. \u2018I\u2019ve essentially been flying blind because private blood tests on private are too much,\u2019 Avery told Metro<\/strong>. \u2018I knew it would be an uphill battle and I was doing pretty fine on my end.\u2019<\/p>\n Avery had a vaginoplasty, a type of gender-reassignment surgery, in February, and an orchidectomy, surgery to remove one or both testicles, limiting their ability to naturally produce sex hormones.<\/p>\n Like Jordan, Avery said they had a doctor appointment in May to discuss treatment, which \u2018went even worse\u2019 than expected.<\/p>\n \u2018He denied oestrogen but suggested I do testosterone and I laughed in his face and said, \u201cNo, thanks\u201d because it was ridiculous. After 10 minutes, I got up and left and knew I\u2019d just get too upset,\u2019 Avery said.<\/p>\n In GP notes seen by Metro<\/strong>, the doctor misgendered Avery and wrote: \u2018[They are] concerned that [they are] now not producing [their] natural hormones due to surgery. I have explained that [their] natural hormone production would be testosterone, not oestrogen.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t The doctor\u2019s office told Avery that due to administrative errors on their part and on Avery\u2019s private clinic\u2019s, a prescription wasn\u2019t possible.<\/p>\n The practice offered Avery annual blood tests, stating: \u2018Please understand that GPs are entitled to decline prescribing in cases where the standards for shared care are not met, particularly when care is initiated by a pilot clinic. However, we acknowledge that the way this was communicated to you in clinic could have been handled more sensitively.\u2019<\/p>\n For Avery, they said they feel their GP\u2019s handling of their HRT is \u2018inadequate to the point of being unsafe\u2019.<\/p>\n \u2018If I didn\u2019t have access and could no longer afford to DIY, I would just get sick for no reason, or I\u2019d have to go private,\u2019 they said. \u2018They would leave me, which they would never do to a cis person.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018I get called a \u201cbiological male\u201d a lot\u2019<\/p>\n Riley* knows this feeling well. Screening tests found she had a hormone disorder, with an NHS endocrinologist recommending her north-central England GP write her a prescription for testosterone shots.<\/p>\n \u2018I suggested that I didn\u2019t want to go on testosterone as I wanted to be a girl, actually,\u2019 Riley told Metro<\/strong>, \u2018and she conferred with my private gender endocrinologist and decided that estrogen HRT would work.<\/p>\n \u2018I went back to my GPs, they were quite iffy about it, but eventually I managed to read my medical notes to them and they agreed I needed HRT for non-trans reasons and that could incidentally be gender-affirming too.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t Yet, Riley claimed that when she sees her GP for blood work or a medicine review, doctors are \u2018hostile\u2019 towards her.<\/p>\n A phlebotomist \u2013 a medical professional who takes blood samples \u2013 once refused to take her blood, Riley alleged.<\/p>\n \u2018She accused me of wasting NHS funds,\u2019 Riley said, \u2018I get called a \u201cbiological male\u201d a lot by two GPs in particular.<\/p>\n \u2018I\u2019m just really tired from having to fight them every single time\u2026 I just feel like my GP can, at any given time and for any given reason, ruin my life.\u2019<\/p>\n \u2018My GP called HRT unsafe\u2019<\/p>\n Parker*, who lives in a rural town, told Metro <\/strong>that their GP tore up their hormone prescription last October. Their GP called their regimen \u2018unsafe\u2019, despite them being on it for 16 years.<\/p>\n \u2018They justified their stance by claiming they suddenly lack the competence to provide care to trans folk and it\u2019s for my safety,\u2019 said Parker, who was discharged from their GIC more than a decade ago.<\/p>\n \u2018They suggested I either go private or stop HRT completely, which would put my health at risk.\u2019<\/p>\n \t\t A third option they gave Parker was to refer back to their GIC, which does not prescribe hormones long-term.<\/p>\n \u2018I had no intention of returning to a place that I found deeply harmful,\u2019 Parker added.<\/p>\n TransActual director, jane fae<\/a>, said there are many reasons why GPs are withdrawing trans healthcare right now.<\/p>\n Some practitioners may feel \u2018nervous\u2019 to do so following a Supreme Court ruling on the definition of \u2018woman\u2019<\/a>. \u2018Work-to-rule\u2019 policies in some GPs, such as capping appointments, have also been a factor.<\/p>\n \u2018Also, inevitably, straight out bigotry hiding behind a mask of concern,\u2019 fae added.<\/p>\n \u2018This is unethical. Worse, when GPs withdraw treatment from trans folk who are post-op, it is downright dangerous. Potentially fatal. <\/p>\n \u2018The NHS needs to step up and tell GPs that this is unacceptable.\u2019<\/p>\n An NHS spokesperson told Metro<\/strong>: \u2018To support GPs in prescribing for adults with gender dysphoria, NHS England has already set up a number of pilot adult clinics that are led by primary care, staffed by specialist GPs who are available to provide quick and effective support to colleagues.<\/p>\n \u2018We are currently carrying out a review of adult gender services, which will look at how to overcome the challenges that some individuals face in accessing a timely prescription.\u2019<\/p>\n * Names have been changed by Metro to protect their anonymity<\/p>\n Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk<\/a>.<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n For more stories like this, <\/strong>check our news page<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n Arrow Arrow Arrow![\"Hormone](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEI_258542516-7a37.jpg\")
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\n\t\tHormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is not solely a form of trans healthcare but is a common treatment (Picture: BSIP\/UIG\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Mandatory](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEI_248113883-8af4.jpg\")
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\n\t\tMany trans people are prescribed HRT by their GP as part of an agreement with a gender clinic (Picture: WIktor Szymanowicz\/NurPhoto\/Shut)<\/p>\n\n
![\"Tombstones](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEI_258542411-c42f.jpg\")
\n\t\tGovernment officials and judges have increasingly limited trans rights, especially healthcare access (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Trans](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2210991118.jpg\")
\n\t\tOne trans person told Metro their HRT prescription of more than a decade was abruptly stopped (Picture: Guy Smallman\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEI_258542415-3f48.jpg\")
\n\t\tWith the treatment being costly on private, some trans people have started \u2018DIY HRT\u2019 (Picture: Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SEI_258542512-f09c.jpg\")
\n\t\tHRT medication can include pills, patches and gels (Picture: Getty Images\/Collection Mix: Sub)<\/p>\n![\"Trans](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2216289140.jpg\")
\n\t\tTransActual says refusing to treat trans patients is \u2018unethical\u2019 (Picture: Wiktor Szymanowicz\/Future Publishing\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
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