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Facing political pressure, UMMC cut care to trans kids before the Legislature banned doing so, emails show

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2 years ago

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The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s TEAM Clinic has long been one of the few medical spaces in Mississippi that aims to serve the LGBTQ community. 

Its co-founder, Dr. Scott Rodgers, has described the “Trustworthy, Evidence-Based, Affirming, and Multidisciplinary” clinic’s mission in passionate terms: “The clinic, its presence and its openness, sends a powerful message that we are here for you.”

But last fall, UMMC leadership made a drastic decision. TEAM Clinic would no longer provide gender-affirming medical care — meaning puberty blockers and hormone therapy — to trans minors. The move in mid-October 2022 came months before lawmakers banned gender-affirming care for trans youth, and was implemented as quietly as possible. Parents received phone calls instead of letters and were supposed to be told only that “unforeseen clinical circumstances” necessitated the change.

The news swiftly spread through Mississippi’s small LGBTQ+ community, but the reasons for it haven’t been reported — until now.

Emails obtained through a public records request show UMMC’s decision to stop providing gender-affirming care to trans youth was a reaction to lawmakers who were seemingly angered that the public hospital was helping trans kids transition at all.

In late August, a legislative committee had begun formally probing for information, like how much state funding supported gender transition at the clinic, part of UMMC’s Center for Gender and Sexual Minority Health.

“While our one pager clearly outlines what the Center is and does and much of it is not objectionable, it seems that the overarching issue of concern is our providing hormone therapy and reassignment is most alarming to Members, coupled with their feeling caught off guard that we do this at all,” Kristy Simms wrote in a Sept. 12 email to Dr. LouAnn Woodward, the vice chancellor, and other executive leadership.

Simms, UMMC’s point person with elected officials at the state and federal level, had a proposal.

“It’s looking more and more like we have two options: Pause or shutter some/all of the work of the Center or be told to do so by the legislature in January.”

UMMC’s decision echoes those made by hospitals in other conservative states. In Texas, a well-known gender clinic closed after receiving an information request from Gov. Greg Abbott. A similar clinic at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee paused gender-affirming care for minors last October following pressure from Republican lawmakers.

UMMC said it had no comment for this story. The emails do not show UMMC officials taking into account the impact that suddenly rescinding care would have on trans youth, but it is unclear what leadership discussed in person.

Among the handful of trans teenagers affected was 17-year-old Raymond Walker, who received puberty blockers and a testosterone prescription through the clinic. That care — which Walker had waited months to get starting in 2020 — was the only thing that relieved the intense gender dysphoria that came with female puberty. It was also a comforting environment. His mother, Katie Rives, recalled that the pediatric endocrinologist “treated Ray like everybody should treat Ray but not everybody does.”

Then one day in early November, Walker learned he could no longer go to TEAM Clinic when Rives picked him up from school. His dad had received a call that the clinic was no longer offering hormone therapy — but wasn’t told why. It was just a few days before Walker’s appointment and he was running out of testosterone.

“Because it was such a welcoming environment, I couldn’t believe that they had just dropped patients like that,” Walker said. “I was just completely blindsided.” 

Walker said he felt like UMMC abandoned trans kids.

“I don’t know how they could have a clean conscience about this,” he said. “They stripped away health care from children. It was an important resource that they just took away.”

Though lawmakers had asked about TEAM Clinic in the past, its work hadn’t come under fire.

In fact, it was thriving. The pioneering clinic, founded in 2015, was booked the first Friday of every month. The staff — a roster of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, physicians and plastic surgeons — often saw more than 50 patients in a day, some of whom had traveled across state lines to be there.

But this time, lawmakers’ inquiries came amid a nationwide panic over gender-affirming care. Across the country, conservative politicians were likening gender-affirming care, the medically recommended treatment for gender dysphoria, to child abuse. By early September, emails show that UMMC had already received “about a dozen inquiries” from lawmakers.

Simms responded by creating a one-pager. She asked leadership if she should send lawmakers a press release that “‘humanizes’ the mission of the clinic and shows that it is doing much more than gender reassignment and hormone therapy.”

“When we transmit this to legislators, we will be sure to reiterate that state funds support our education mission ONLY,” she wrote on Sept. 9.

Three days later, Simms had an urgent update. She had received even more calls.

“We have been contacted by chairmen we rely on, friendly legislators and leadership staff,” she wrote on Sept. 12. “Today I got a call from Sam Mims who was very frustrated and indicated that he had been talking with the Speaker about this and he is not happy. I would characterize the conversation as hostile and slightly threatening.”

It’s unclear what Mims, chair of the House Public Health and Human Services Committee, said because he did not return inquiries from Mississippi Today. But things moved quickly after that. Simms suggested leadership discuss the future of TEAM Clinic, and Woodward emailed Brian Rutledge, her chief of staff, to coordinate. Rutledge then suggested Rodgers, the clinic’s co-founder, be included, noting he “will likely have some feelings.”

Among leadership, Rodgers was in a unique position. A tenured professor, his scholarly work has looked at the mental health of LGBTQ+ youth. That research inspired him to help start TEAM Clinic. It has also enabled him to rise through UMMC’s ranks, where last year he became associate vice chancellor for academic affairs.

The emails don’t include details about a meeting, so it’s unclear what leadership discussed or how Rodgers’ perspective was factored into the decision. But later that week, Woodward sent Rodgers an email, urging him to focus on “what we can do for UMMC that is feasible and good.”

“I know this is not fully possible – but to the degree that you can do so – please don’t let the current challenges and issues get you down,” she wrote on Sept. 14. “There is nothing about the situation that is your fault. We likely will have to make some adjustments. And I can not predict what the legislature will do.”

Rodgers replied that night.

He asked Woodward about an idea she would “likely consider ‘high risk.’” He wrote that he had traveled the country giving successful talks on TEAM Clinic. Perhaps he could convince the Institutions of Higher Learning or lawmakers of the clinic’s value.

“I am confident that I won’t be able to win over everyone, but if my track record is any indicator, I will likely make some inroads into changing hearts and minds,” he wrote.

It was either that, Rodgers continued, or “sit back, hope this dies down, and begin dismantling TEAM clinic, which is likely the safer approach to take, but it sure doesn’t feel right to me.”

Woodward didn’t reply in writing, and it’s not clear if she ever OK’d Rodgers’ request. Rodgers didn’t respond to a request for comment.

“I am not intimidated by the politicians and the Board, and I would treat them with great respect throughout, just as I treat each and every family that I’ve ever worked with,” he assured Woodward. “I also wouldn’t make it political at all.”

In the following month, emails show that leadership monitored the growing coverage about the clinic and expressed surprise that it had been targeted at all. 

“For example, the recent bru ha ha created about our TEAM clinic (clinic for LGBTQ) – not expected,” Woodward wrote in an Oct. 13 email to Tom Duff, the IHL board president. “The clinic has been in place in some form since 2015 and in its current form since 2017 – who knew it would be a hot topic in September of 2022?”

A plan to end TEAM Clinic’s services for trans youth, created by the co-directors of UMMC’s Center for Gender and Sexuality Minority Health, Alex Mills and Seth Kalin, was dated for the next day. It was printed and hand-delivered to leadership. Employees at the TEAM clinic had been told not to use email to communicate about the transition period.

According to a copy obtained by Mississippi Today, the goal was to move all trans youth patients away from the clinic by Nov. 4. Though the plan was specific to TEAM Clinic, it impacted services across UMMC. Minors who had gone to TEAM Clinic for counseling would be moved to another UMMC center. Those being seen for gender-affirming care were to be given a list of “LGBTQ+ friendly health services” — all outside of UMMC. The only “providers outside of Mississippi” were two websites: getplume.com and queermed.com. 

If parents wanted information about a UMMC-specific provider, the plan says they were supposed to be told to call TEAM clinic.

“We need to ensure a safe and adequate transfer of care and on emergent bases may need to have patients seen during the November TEAM clinic,” Mills and Kalin wrote. “These potential cases can be reviewed by UMMC leadership should they wish.”

It didn’t always work out that way in practice — at least not for Walker, the teen whose testosterone prescription was running out. His dad left three calls for his pediatric endocrinologist, but ultimately, his parents found a new provider on their own. They ended up at Spectrum: The Other Clinic in Hattiesburg, an hour and a half drive from the Jackson metro area.

Stacie Pace, Spectrum’s co-owner, received a flurry of calls from other scared parents. A passionate advocate for trans health care, she was furious to hear of UMMC’s decision.

“It’s pitiful to me that the leadership in an organization as large as UMMC — that has its own medical school, that produces its own research — is being forced to bend to political whims,” she told Mississippi Today. “This is insanity. This is a page from Hitler’s book on how to erase people.”

The emails obtained by Mississippi Today do not show whether leadership appeared to consider the impact that ending gender-affirming care would have on trans youth patients, who have high rates of mental illness and suicidality.

That would have been crucial to consider, noted Arthur Caplan, a medical ethicist at New York University. He said that neither the plan, nor the way it was implemented in Walker’s case, was sufficient, because patients need to be fully apprised of their options for care both in state and out.

“You can’t say, ‘We’re done, call this 1-800 number of this website, good luck.’ That’s not adequate,” he said. “You’ve gotta do much better than saying goodbye, here’s a website.”

Per Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure policies, physicians wanting to end a patient relationship should give written notice and agree to continue providing care for at least 30 days.

Kalin couldn’t be reached. Mills, who spoke to Mississippi Today on his behalf and not UMMC’s, said he was “demoralized” by the failure of health care leaders in Mississippi to stand up for trans kids.

He apologized for what happened.

“I don’t know how to summarize it other than just saying I’m sorry to the community, to these families,” he said. “If there was something that I could do, or if I could just say the right thing to the right person in power to defend the right to health care and life, I wish I knew what it was. And I wish I could have said it before September.”

Walker said he could see how UMMC leadership may have felt like they were picking “the lesser of two evils,” that perhaps if they stopped treating trans kids at the clinic, lawmakers might not pass House Bill 1125.

But he still felt there was “a better way to do it.”

“They could have stayed and fought for their patients and maybe fought the lawmakers or say hey we swore an oath as medical providers, we can’t just stop,” Walker said. “I want to know what they were thinking. They swore an oath as medical providers to do no harm. Every person who helped in making this decision has broken that oath.”

Read all the emails here and the transition plan here.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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https://www.biloxinewsevents.com/?p=237080

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Mississippi Stories: Michael May of Lazy Acres

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8 hours ago

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January 21, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – rlake – 2025-01-21 14:51:00

In this episode of Mississippi Stories, Mississippi Today Editor-at-Large Marshall Ramsey takes a trip to Lazy Acres. In 1980, Lazy Acres Christmas tree farm was founded in Chunky, Mississippi by Raburn and Shirley May. Twenty-one years later, Michael and Cathy May purchased Lazy Acres. Today, the farm has grown into a multi seasonal business offering a Bunny Patch at Easter, Pumpkin Patch in the fall, Christmas trees and an spectacular Christmas light show.  It’s also a masterclass in family business entrepreneurship and agricultural tourism.

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This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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On this day in 1921

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16 hours ago

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January 21, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – Jerry Mitchell – 2025-01-21 07:00:00

Jan. 21, 1921

George Washington Carver Credit: Wikipedia

George Washington Carver became one of the first Black experts to testify before Congress. 

His unlikely road to Washington began after his birth in Missouri, just before the Civil War ended. When he was a week old, he and his mother and his sister were kidnapped by night raiders. The slaveholder hired a man to track them down, but the only one the man could locate was George, and the slaveholder exchanged a race horse for George’s safe return. George and his brother were raised by the slaveholder and his wife. 

The couple taught them to read and write. George wound up attending a school for Black children 10 miles away and later tried to attend Highland University in Kansas, only to get turned away because of the color of his skin. Then he attended Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, before becoming the first Black student at what is now Iowa State University, where he received a Master’s of Science degree and became the first Black faculty member. 

Booker T. Washington then invited Carver to head the Tuskegee Institute’s Agriculture Department, where he found new uses for peanuts, sweet potatoes, soybeans and other crops. 

In the past, segregation would have barred Carver’s testimony before Congress, but white peanut farmers, desperate to convince lawmakers about the need for a tariff on peanuts because of cheap Chinese imports, believed Carver could captivate them — and captivate he did, detailing how the nut could be transformed into candy, milk, livestock feed, even ink. 

“I have just begun with the peanut,” he told lawmakers. 

Impressed, they passed the Fordney-McCumber Tariff of 1922. 

In addition to this work, Carver promoted racial harmony. From 1923 to 1933, he traveled to white Southern colleges for the Commission on Interracial Cooperation. Time magazine referred to him as a “Black Leonardo,” and he died in 1943. 

That same year, the George Washington Carver Monument complex, the first national park honoring a Black American, was founded in Joplin, Missouri.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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Legislative recap: 2025 tax cut battle has been joined

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1 day ago

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January 20, 2025

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mississippitoday.org – Geoff Pender – 2025-01-20 12:00:00

After relatively brief debate and questioning given its magnitude, the state House passed the first meaningful legislation of the new session: House Bill 1, a measure that would eliminate the state income tax, trim taxes on non-prepared food and raise sales and gasoline taxes.

It would mark a sea change in state tax structure, a shift from income to consumption taxation.

“We are at a place where we can finally tell the hard-working people of Mississippi we can eliminate the tax on work,” House Ways and Means Chairman Trey Lamar, HB1’s author, told his colleagues.

The measure passed the House 88-24. It gained some Democratic support in the supermajority Republican House, with nine Democrats voting in favor, 24 against and 12 voting present.

The proposal garnered some bipartisan support because it includes at least a couple of items Democratic lawmakers have championed in the past: A gasoline tax to help fix crumbling roadways, and a reduction in the “grocery” tax, or the sales tax levied on unprepared food, of which Mississippi has the highest overall rate in the nation.

It still met with some Democratic opposition in part because it is a sea change toward more “regressive” taxation. Proponents say this is just, people should pay more for state services they use, such as roadways, and for things they buy as opposed to taxing income. Opponents say this places a proportionately higher tax burden on people of modest means.

“I would say the people hurt the most with this would be working people who have to put gas in their car to go to work or those who have to purchase materials to do a job,” House Democratic Leader Robert Johnson said.

Beyond that concern, opponents or skeptics worry that the foundation of the proposed tax overhaul would be built on shifting sands — a state economy that has been so rosy primarily from the federal government dumping billions of dollars in pandemic spending into Mississippi. With the federal spigot being cut off, some worry, the state economy could slump, and the massive tax cuts in this new plan could provide a state budget crisis, of which Mississippi has much experience, and underfunding of crucial services such as schools, roads, health care and law enforcement.

The largest hurdle Republican House leaders face in seeing their tax plan through to law is not in garnering bipartisan support. It’s internecine disagreement with the Senate Republican leadership, which still appears to harbor abovementioned concerns about overhauling tax structure in uncertain economic times and betting on growth to cover massive tax cuts.

Senate leaders have said they want to enact more tax cuts, but their plan has not yet been released. Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann has provided some details of what he wants to see, but it would appear he wants a more cautious approach on cuts. He has not publicly opined on the tax increases in the House plan.

Quote of the Week

“Have you ever worn a belt and suspenders, lady? It’s a belt and suspenders approach.” — Rep. Trey Lamar, R-Senatobia, to Rep. Omeria Scott, D-Laurel, during floor debate on Lamar’s bill to eliminate the state income tax and raise other taxes.

“No. I have not worn a belt and suspenders. I don’t know anyone who has worn a belt and suspenders,” Scott replied.

In Brief

House will renew push to legalize mobile sports betting

House Gaming Committee Chairman Casey Eure, R-Saucier, told Mississippi Today he plans on taking another crack at legalizing mobile sports betting in the state. In 2024, the House and Senate passed versions of legislation to permit online sports betting, but never agreed on a final proposal. Some lawmakers raised concerns that gambling platforms would have no incentive to partner with smaller casinos, and most of the money would instead flow to the Mississippi Gulf Coast’s already bustling casinos. Proponents say legalization would undercut the influence of illicit offshore sports betting platforms.

“I’ve been working on this bill for many years and I’m just trying to satisfy any concerns that the Senate may have so we can pass this and start collecting the tax dollars that the state deserves and not allowing everyone to place bets with these offshore accounts,” Eure said. “I feel like the state is losing between $40-$80 million a year in tax revenue.”

Sports wagering has been permitted in the state for years, but online betting has remained illegal amid fears the move could harm the bottom line of the state’s brick-and-mortar casinos. Mobile sports betting is legal in 30 states and Washington, D.C.,  according to the American Gaming Association. — Michael Goldberg

Hosemann makes Senate committee chair changes

Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann last week named new chairmen of committees, after former state Sen. Jenifer Branning was sworn into office as a new justice on the Mississippi Supreme Court. 

Sen. Chuck Younger, a Republican from Columbus, previously led the Senate Agriculture Committee and will replace Branning as chairman of the Transportation Committee. Sen. Neil Whaley, a Republican from Potts Camp, previously led the Senate Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Committee, but will now lead the Senate Agriculture Committee. 

Here are the other changes to Senate committees: 

Sen. Ben Suber, a Republican from Bruce, will be the new chairman of the Senate Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Committee 

Sen. Bart Williams, a Republican from Starkville, is the new chairman of the Senate Public Property Committee

Sen. Scott DeLano, a Republican from Gulfport, will lead the Senate Technology Committee 

Sen. Robin Robinson, a Republican from Laurel, will chair the Senate Labor Committee 

Sen. Angela Turner Ford, a Democrat from West Point, will lead the Senate Drug Policy Committee.  — Taylor Vance

What’s in a name? Democratic Rep. Scott hopes GOP majority will pass ‘Donald J. Trump Act’ bills

Perhaps tired of seeing many measures she authors ignored or shot down in flames by the Republican supermajority in the Mississippi Legislature, Democratic Rep. Omeria Scott of Laurel is trying a new strategy: naming bills after Republican President-elect Trump.

For this session, Scott has authored: House Bill 61, the “Donald J. Trump Voting Rights Restoration Act;” House Bill 62, the “Donald J. Trump Ban-The-Box Act … to prohibit public employers from using criminal history as a bar to employment;” and House Bill 249, the “Donald J. Trump Early Voting Act.” — Geoff Pender

More bills filed to criminalize abortion

Since the 2022 Dobbs Supreme Court decision overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, Mississippi lawmakers have proposed bills to criminalize workarounds to the state’s strict abortion ban – including criminalizing the abortion pill and out-of-state abortions. The 2025 legislative session is no exception. 

Rep. William Tracy Arnold, R-Booneville, filed House Bill 616 that would make it a felony to manufacture or make accessible medication abortion. Anyone convicted of the crime would be subject to a fine between $1,000 and $5,000, as well as imprisonment between two and five years. Last year, about 250 Mississippians each month requested medication abortion from Aid Access, the only online telemedicine service supplying medication abortion via mail in the U.S. 

Helping a minor receive an abortion would also be criminalized under House Bill 148 filed by Rep. Mark Tullos, R-Raleigh. That would include transporting a minor out of state to undergo an abortion, as well as helping a minor procure a medication abortion – both of which would be punishable by not less than 20 years in prison or a fine of not less than $50,000. — Sophia Paffenroth

By the Numbers

$1.1 billion

The estimated net annual cost of the House plan to eliminate the state income tax and raise sales taxes, once fully phased in. Proponents say economic growth would allow the state budget, currently about $7 billion a year, to absorb the cut. Eliminating the income tax would cost the state $2.2 billion in revenue, but the House plan would raise about $1.1 billion in other taxes in offset.

0

The amount of income tax Mississippians would pay after a 10-year phased in elimination of the state income tax. With previous cuts being phased in, state income taxes next year will already be reduced to 4%, among the lowest rates in the nation.

8.5 %

The new Mississippi sales tax, up from current 7%, under the House tax plan assuming most local governments would not opt out of adding a new 1.5% local sales tax.

13 cents more a gallon

The cost of the House’s proposed new 5% gasoline tax, based on last week’s average cost of gasoline in Mississippi of $2.62. The new 5% tax would be on top of the flat 18.4 cents a gallon current state excise on gasoline.

4%

The tax on unprepared food once a reduction of the current 7% would be phased in over a decade under the House plan. The state would over time reduce its sales tax on such groceries to 2.5%, but local governments would add a 1.5% sales tax to such items unless they opt out.

Full Legislative Coverage

Lawmakers must pass new legislation to improve access to prenatal care

Lawmakers will file another bill this session to help low-income pregnant women get into the doctor earlier – after the federal government rejected the program set up under last year’s law, because of discrepancies between what was written into state law and federal regulations for presumptive Medicaid eligibility. Read the story.

Proposal: eliminate income tax, add 5% tax on gas, allow cities, counties to levy local sales tax

House leaders last week unveiled a sweeping tax cut proposal that would eventually abolish the state income tax, slash taxes on groceries, increase local sales taxes and shore up funds for state and local road work. Read the story.

A new Mississippi law aims to limit jailing people awaiting mental health treatment. Is it working?

Officials say a new law to decrease the number of people being jailed solely because they need mental health treatment has led to fewer people with serious mental illness detained in jails – but the data is contradictory and incomplete. Lawmakers plan legislation to make more counties report the data. Read the story.

How soon we forget: Mississippi House push for record tax cuts revives fear of repeat budget crises

Eight years ago, from a combination of dozens of tax cuts the Legislature approved and a slumping economy, the state saw a budget crisis that resulted in severely underfunded schools, government layoffs, a near halt to building new roads and highways and problems maintaining the ones we have, too few state troopers on the highways and cuts to most major state services. Read the story.

NAACP legislative redistricting proposal pits two pairs of senators against each other

The Mississippi chapter of the ACLU has submitted a proposal to the courts to redraw the state’s legislative districts that creates two new majority-Black Senate districts and pits two pairs of incumbent senators against one another. Read the story.

Legislation to send more public money to private schools appears stalled as lawmakers consider other changes

Some top lawmakers in Mississippi’s Republican-controlled Legislature are prepared to make it easier for students to transfer between public schools but remain skeptical of sending more public money to private schools. Read the story.

House passes $1.1 billion income tax elimination-gas and sales tax increase plan in bipartisan vote

A bill that phases out the state income tax, cuts the state grocery tax and raises sales taxes and gasoline taxes passed the House of Representatives with a bipartisan vote on Thursday. Read the story.

Tate Reeves and other top Mississippi Republicans owe thanks to President Joe Biden

The tremendous cash surpluses that some state Republicans cite when defending their plan to eliminate the state’s income tax would not exist if not for the billions of dollars in federal funds that have been pumped into the state during Biden’s presidential tenure. Read the story.

Podcast: Mississippi transportation director discusses proposed new gasoline tax

Mississippi Department of Transportation Director Brad White tells Mississippi Today’s Geoff Pender and Taylor Vance he’s staying “in his lane” and out of the politics of a House tax overhaul that would eliminate the income tax and raise sales and gasoline taxes, but that he’s pleased lawmakers are trying to address the long running need for a steady new stream of money to help cover highway maintenance needs. Listen to the podcast.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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