The rule affects coverage for hormone therapy and puberty blockers, as well as other procedures. It does not, however, apply to behavioral healthcare.<\/p>\n
Colorado\u2019s coverage suspension will begin Oct. 13 to match when the federal rule takes effect. Under the federal rule, patients taking hormones will continue to have coverage for a six-month-long tapering period.<\/p>\n
In a statement, the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing, which administers Medicaid in the state, said it is \u201cworking on a plan to support impacted members and their providers through these changes, in coordination with the Attorney General\u2019s Office.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAny ability to resume covering gender affirming care will require legislative action,\u201d the department added.<\/p>\n
In the 2024-25 fiscal year, about 500 people under the age of 19 received hormone therapy covered by Medicaid as part of gender-affirming treatment in conjunction with a diagnosis of gender dysphoria, according to the department, which is known as HCPF. That is the most recent year for which complete data is available.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP24339678769810-1200x800.jpg\")
Supporters of transgender rights Sarah Kolick, left, of Cleveland, and Derek Torstenson, of Colorado Springs, right, near the U.S. Supreme Court building, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo\/Jacquelyn Martin)<\/p>\n
A handful of people also received other types of gender-affirming care that the department lumped under the categories of either \u201cprocedures,\u201d which generally refers to services provided by a doctor, or \u201cinpatient,\u201d which covers services provided at hospitals. The inpatient category could include gender-affirming surgeries, though it is unclear if it does in this case because HCPF did not provide a detailed breakdown of the claims.<\/p>\n
The department did not provide similar data for youth covered by CHP+.<\/p>\n
Colorado covers around 450,000 children on Medicaid<\/a>, meaning the number of young people receiving hormones for gender-affirming care makes up about 0.1% of the total caseload.\u00a0<\/p>\n Another 70,000 people are enrolled in CHP+, which also provides coverage to pregnant women.<\/p>\n The cost to provide the coverage is not huge compared with HCPF\u2019s overall budget, which stood at roughly $16 billion in the 2024-25 fiscal year<\/a> and is now up to more than $20 billion<\/a>.<\/p>\n In 2024-25, Colorado\u2019s Medicaid program spent a little under $1.3 million on gender-affirming care for people under the age of 19, according to figures provided by HCPF. Of that, about $700,000 came from federal funds.<\/p>\n In the six fiscal years starting in July 2019 and ending in June 2025, Medicaid spent a total of $7.1 million on gender-affirming care, including $4.2 million in federal funds, according to the department.<\/p>\n Colorado could choose to work around the new federal rule by paying for gender-affirming care in Medicaid and CHP+ entirely with state dollars. And those amounts are typically well within HCPF\u2019s budget to absorb, despite the agency\u2019s much-discussed spending challenges<\/a>.<\/p>\n But to do that, the department would need legislative authorization, which could not happen until lawmakers are back in session \u2014 in January, barring a special session being called.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing does not have the statutory or budget authority to cover these services without federal funding,\u201d the department reiterated in its statement.<\/p>\n The administration of President Donald Trump issued the new rule about gender-affirming care \u2014 which it refers to as \u201csex-rejecting procedures\u201d \u2014 because it says the treatments are unsafe and not proven to be beneficial. The new rule is part of an administration-wide campaign to crack down on gender-affirming care for youth, which includes sending subpoenas and threatening punishment to hospitals, as well as releasing a report last week titled \u201cWolves in White Coats.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cChildren deserve our protection, not experimental interventions that pose serious risks and convey no proven benefits,\u201d Dr. Mehmet Oz, the head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cBy cutting off federal funds for these sex-rejecting procedures, we\u2019re following the science, saving taxpayer dollars, and, most importantly, protecting children from potentially irreversible harm so they can truly flourish.\u201d<\/p>\n Major medical organizations dispute this, including the American Medical Association, which says it supports access to evidence-based gender-affirming care<\/a>. The association, though, recently agreed with another group that gender-affirming surgeries should generally be deferred until adulthood<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Human Rights Campaign called the new federal rule outrageous.<\/p>\n