The UK Health Secretary announced the indefinite ban on puberty blockers given to Under-18s questioning their gender identity across the UK, following a consultation and advice from the Commission on Human Medicines – calling the way the drugs had been used a “scandal”.
The expert group said prescribing the drugs to children for gender dysphoria was an “unacceptable safety risk”. Campaigners on both sides have reacted to the news, with those in support of the ban commending Streeting’s “integrity” and those against calling it “discrimination”.
Puberty blockers are drugs used to delay or prevent puberty happening. A temporary ban was put in place by the last government, and had been renewed twice by the Health Secretary.
He stated that the review identified cases where children had been prescribed the treatment after filling out an online form and only having one online consultation with a healthcare provider.
The health secretary said it was essential for the government to be evidence-led when it came to healthcare.
Puberty blockers work by suppressing the release of hormones and can be prescribed to children questioning their gender
Puberty Blockers are medicines used to delay puberty in children
The order followed a publication by paediatrician Dr Hilary Cass, into gender care services for children. It found a lack of evidence around treatment for under-18s with puberty-blocking drugs.
In March, NHS England decided that puberty blockers would no longer be routine treatment for children with gender dysphoria.
Announcing the indefinite ban, Streeting said: “It is a scandal that medicine was given to vulnerable children without the proof that it was safe or effective.”
However, he added that the planned clinical trial by NHS England into the use of puberty blockers would go ahead. The ban would then be reviewed in 2027, he said, in the light of any new evidence that emerged. Under-18s who were on the drugs before the ban was introduced have been allowed to continue using them.