On June 30, 2025, UPMC, Pennsylvania’s largest healthcare provider, officially stopped providing gender-affirming care for trans youth under 19. That includes pulling the plug on affirming therapy, halting prescriptions for puberty blockers, and creating an environment where trans youth are no longer seen, respected, or cared for.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about surgeries. This is about denying kids the basic, evidence-based care that keeps them alive and whole. It’s about stripping away dignity and replacing it with stigma. And while these policies are implemented by powerful institutions, the consequences land on the shoulders of trans kids and their families, who are now left scrambling for care, often forced to pay out-of-pocket just to keep their children safe.
In Pittsburgh, the community is fighting back. Trans YOUniting, a grassroots organization led by and for trans people, has launched the Trans Youth Healing & Health Fund, a bold, community-led mutual aid initiative to fill the gap left by medical abandonment.
“They’re cutting off healthcare for our kids. We’re stepping in because our children deserve better,” said Dena Stanley, Executive Director of Trans Youniting
The fund is aiming to raise $200,000 by November, with plans to begin distributing money as soon as possible because, as the organizers put it, care can’t wait.
The Trans Youth Healing & Health Fund isn’t just a stopgap, it’s a radical act of love and resistance. The money will directly help trans youth across Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania access gender-affirming therapy, puberty blockers, private care provides where public systems fall short, and safe, affirming spaces where young people are respected, seen, and called by their name.
A portion of the fund also supports the behind-the-scenes work it takes to distribute funds safely, quickly, and equitably, a reminder that mutual aid isn’t just about money, but about care infrastructure.
Trans YOUniting is not doing this alone. The fund is supported by a statewide coalition of advocates and organizations, united in the shared mission of protecting trans youth when the systems designed to care for them have failed.
This isn’t just a Pittsburgh story. It echoes the national trend of healthcare rollbacks targeting trans youth, often under the guise of “protection,” while doing real, lasting harm.
Gender-affirming care is life-saving medicine.
“This is what community looks like when systems fail. This is how we protect our kids.”
The Trans Youth Healing & Health Fund is a blueprint for what it means to truly show up. It’s not charity. It’s solidarity. Let’s stand with trans youth. Let’s be the infrastructure of care. Let’s fight like hell for our future.
