US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order restricting sex change procedures for people under the age of 19, AFP reports.
The order comes a week after Trump said in his inauguration speech that his government would only recognise two genders - male and female.
"Today, medical professionals across the country are mutilating and sterilizing an increasing number of susceptible children," the order reads. "This dangerous trend will be a stain on our nation's history and must be stopped."
Trump's order says that from now on, U.S. policy will be that it "will not fund, sponsor, encourage, assist, or support the so-called 'crossing over' of a child from one sex to the other."
This includes "chemical and surgical mutilation" - including puberty-blocking drugs, hormones and sex-change operations.
The Republican added that the government will now "strictly enforce all laws that prohibit or restrict these destructive and life-altering procedures."
Although there is no law in the United States that prohibits medical gender reassignment procedures for transgender youth, Trump has ordered an end to all federal support for such procedures.
This includes banning funding for sex reassignment under the Medicaid health insurance program for poor families, the Medicaid scheme used by seniors, and under the US Department of Defense's health insurance, which covers about 2 million children.
Trump also declared that he would work with Congress to draft legislation that would allow children and parents to sue doctors who performed sex reassignment surgery.
Last week, the president said at the Davos forum that under his administration, sex-change operations "will be very rare."
Two dozen Republican-led states have already passed laws restricting medical care for sex change for minors. | BGNES
