ATLANTA — In a significant move, pediatricians from the American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds), alongside colleagues from numerous medical organizations across the United States, have signed the Doctors Protecting Children Declaration.
The declaration urges major American medical institutions to cease current protocols for children and adolescents experiencing discomfort with their biological sex.
Authored by ACPeds, the Declaration has garnered support from a wide range of medical and health organizations.
The organizations include:
- The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM),
- American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC),
- American College of Family Medicine (ACFM),
- Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS),
- Catholic Health Care Leadership Alliance (CHCLA),
- Catholic Medical Association (CMA),
- Child & Parental Rights Campaign (CPRC),
- Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA),
- Coalition of Jewish Values,
- Colorado Principled Physicians,
- Genspect,
- Honey Lake Clinic,
- National Association of Catholic Nurses,
- National Catholic Bioethics Center (NCBC),
- North Carolina Physicians for Freedom (NCPFF)
Leading pediatricians and other healthcare professionals nationwide have also signed the Declaration.
The Declaration’s co-signers emphasize that the best available evidence indicates that children face significant harm from surgeries, puberty blockers, and cross-sex hormones.
They argue that these interventions do not enhance the physical or mental well-being of adolescents with gender dysphoria.
The Declaration specifically calls on prominent medical institutions — including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Endocrine Society, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association, and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry — to adhere to evidence-based research.
It advocates for comprehensive evaluations and therapies for youth with gender dysphoria, rather than immediate medical interventions.
“It is time that these American medical institutions follow the science and the lead of our European professional colleagues and cease to promote protocols that harm children, including the promotion of social affirmation, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries for children and adolescents who experience distress over their biological sex,” said Dr. Jill Simons, pediatrician and Executive Director of ACPeds.
To view the Declaration and the list of co-signers click here.