A dozen companies that manufacture and retail chest binders have been subjected to a legal warning from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week, informing them that the products violate federal law.
The letters were sent under the instruction of Donald Trump, whose administration last week announced advanced measures aimed at removing access to gender-affirming care for transgender youngsters.
During a press conference delivered at the headquarters of the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C on Thursday (18 Dec), Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr slammed the supposed 'lasting physical and psychological damage' that such care has on under 18s.
In a joint announcement with Medicaid leader, Dr Mehmet Oz, Kennedy hit out: "This is not medicine. It is malpractice."
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He added: "Under my leadership, and answering President Trump’s call to action, the federal government will do everything in its power to stop unsafe, irreversible practices that put our children at risk.
"Our children deserve better, and we are delivering on that promise."
Trump's gender-affirming care ban explained
As per the new blanket ban, doctors and hospital staff will be barred from receiving federal Medicaid (healthcare cover for low-income Americans) reimbursement for gender-affirming care - including surgery, hormone therapies and puberty blockers - in cases involving people under 18.
Medicaid will also block funding for any services at hospitals that provide paediatric gender-affirming care.
Another bill introduced by Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene also saw a clause implemented, aimed at criminally prosecuting doctors who provide such care.
Following the passing of the new bill by Congress on Wednesday, Dr Marty Makary - the head of the FDA - announced plans for his team to send warning letters to businesses that manufacture and advertise chest binders for young people.
Impact on chest binder customers
He claimed these brands were guilty of 'illegal marketing of breast binders for children, for the purposes of treating gender dysphoria', adding: "Pushing transgender ideology in children is predatory, it’s wrong, and it needs to stop."
For those unfamiliar, these compression garments are worn to flatten the chest, creating a more masculine or androgynous silhouette, commonly used by transgender, non-binary, and gender-fluid individuals to reduce gender dysphoria.
The products - available in styles like tank tops or bands - work by pressing breast tissue flat against the body.
These letters were actually sent out on 12 December, ahead of the new legislation being signed off, warning brands that binders were not registered as medical devices in violation of federal law.
The warnings accused retailers of failing to register their products as Class I medical devices with the FDA, in turn, allegedly violating record-keeping requirements of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (via Them).
They read: "Your firm should take prompt action to address any violations identified in this letter. Failure to adequately address this matter may result in regulatory action being initiated by the FDA without further notice.
"These actions include, but are not limited to, seizure and injunction."
Expert concerns raised
In response to the news, Susan Kressly, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics condemned the Trump administration's 'unprecedented actions and harmful rhetoric', slamming the new rules as part of a 'baseless intrusion into the patient-physician relationship'.
She added: "Patients, their families, and their physicians - not politicians or government officials - should be the ones to make decisions together about what care is best for them.
"The government’s actions today make that task harder, if not impossible, for families of gender-diverse and transgender youth."
Concerns have also been raised by LGBTQ+ youngsters with regard to alternative measures being taken to suppress breasts that could possibly inflict harm onto trans and androgynous individuals.
Responding to the ban on Instagram, one user hit out: "You can bet your biscuits young people will use ace bandages, which have a history of causing permanent damage and rib fractures. So yeah, excellent work."
Another agreed, warning: "Don’t use alt bandages. Journal your emotion and feelings through this as a historical document. And at midterms we will do our best to oust as many conservatives as possible."
The 10 manufacturers to receive these notices were FLAVNT, The Fluxion, For Them, gc2b, GenderBender, ShapeShifter Apparel, TomboyX, TOMSCOUT, TransGuy Supply, and UNTAG.
Online retailers Early to Bed and Passional Boutique also received the same warning, being accused of violating interstate commerce laws by selling binders made by one or more of the ten manufacturers.
Trump has already passed a series of anti-trans laws (Tasos Katopodis/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Which other anti-LGBTQ+ laws has Trump passed?
After returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump, 79, already vowed that the federal government would recognise 'only two genders' going forward, and banned trans women from competing in female sports.
The father-of-five also issued bans on new passports for individuals who wished to define their gender as 'X', and signed an executive order declaring that the US government would not 'fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called "transition" of a child from one sex to another'.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the LGBT Foundation on 0345 3 30 30 30, 10am–6pm Monday to Friday, or email [email protected]
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Politics, LGBTQ,
Rhianna Benson