CDC removes references to trans people on website
The CDC has been forced to comply with Trump’s executive orders. (CDC)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) removed and edited any references to transgender people, gender identity, and equity from its website on Friday.
Pages about HIV testing for transgender people and information on supporting LGBTQ+ youth and their healthcare were no longer available on the CDC website, in order to comply with a raft of executive orders signed by Trump that targets trans rights and diversity and inclusion policies.
The executive orders stated that “all agency programs that use taxpayer money to promote or reflect gender ideology” must be stopped and that the United States would only recognise two sexes: male and female.
According to the Washington Post, CDC employees were told via email that they were to remove “all outward facing media (websites, social media accounts, etc.) that inculcate or promote gender ideology by 5pm on Friday (January 31).
Pages that list vaccines recommended by the CDC’s vaccine advisory committee were no longer available due to its inclusion of the mpox vaccine, as well as other pages that had nothing to do with gender as staffers raced to reach the deadline.
Several databases used by researchers around the world have also been removed.
The vaccine recommendations came back online on Saturday, with no mention of the mpox vaccine – which is recommended specifically for some LGBTQ+ people – but it is unclear whether the other pages will ever return.
The CDC has also instructed its scientists to retract any research considered by medical or scientific journals that may not comply with the executive orders.
CDC researchers were instructed to ensure the following phrases were removed in their research: “gender, transgender, pregnant person, pregnant people, LGBT, transsexual, non-binary, assigned male at birth, assigned female at birth, biologically male, biologically female”.
This includes manuscripts that are in the revision stages but have not yet been accepted for publication or any manuscripts that have already been accepted for publication but not live, according to an email sent to CDC employees seen by the Washington Post.
It is unclear how many manuscripts will be affected or how far-reaching the policy extends as demographic information about gender included in other health studies might also be affected.
