GLAAD has documented the anti-LGBTQ history of Donald Trump, including his policies and efforts against access to best practice, lifesaving health care for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and especially transgender Americans. His full anti-LGBTQ record is available on GLAAD’s Trump Accountability Tracker. Health care is a top issue for LGBTQ voters according to GLAAD’s 2024 poll on the upcoming election.
Trump’s health care record for LGBTQ people includes the following:
In 2020, just two weeks into Pride Month and on the anniversary of the deadly Pulse nightclub shooting at an LGBTQ club in Orlando, and in the middle of the pandemic, the Trump administration issued new regulations that:
Eliminated LGBTQ nondiscrimination provisions in health care under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act.
Rolled back additional federal health care protections for transgender people, making it more difficult to fight against discrimination by doctors, medical facilities and health insurance providers and making it easier for health care workers to object to providing care and procedures to LGBTQ people and women if they cite their religious or moral beliefs in doing so.
Trump stated that his goal is to “totally kill” the Affordable Care Act, eliminating health care coverage that millions of Americans depend on, including LGBTQ Americans who are significantly more likely to live in poverty and less likely to have insurance than the general population. Despite claiming to have a “terrific,” “phenomenal,” and “fantastic” plan to replace the Affordable Care Act, he never delivered one.
In 2019, Trump proposed cutting over $1.35 billion, or 29%, from the PEPFAR (the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) budget, the largest-ever proposed cuts to global HIV programs. PEPFAR is the U.S. government program that fights AIDS abroad. In 2017, Trump proposed cutting 17% of PEPFAR’s funding as well as hundreds of millions of dollars in funding from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; and $627 billion from Medicaid, the insurance through which approximately 40% of the roughly 1.1 million people living with HIV in the U.S. depend on for care.
In 2018, the Trump administration announced the creation of a new office within the Department of Health and Human Services to protect religious medical professionals who wish to discriminate against LGBTQ patients and others.
Trump has a documented history of spreading disinformation about HIV/AIDS as far back as 1993, such as making suggestions that the virus could be spread by kissing; and that people who test positive often “go out on a rampage on purpose” to intentionally spread the virus.
Despite research and reports showing that LGBTQ people suffered disproportionately negative health impacts related to COVID-19, Trump regularly “downplayed the severity of the coronavirus pandemic and often contradicted public health experts and members of his own administration in their more grave warnings about the virus” throughout his presidency, according to an investigative report by NPR.
Trump’s newly-selected running mate JD Vance is staunchly opposed to lifesaving health care for transgender Americans.
In July 2023, Vance introduced federal legislation to criminalize providing health care for transgender youth – including hormones or surgery – punishable by up to 25 years in prison. “Under no circumstances should doctors be allowed to perform these gruesome, irreversible operations on underage children,” Vance said in a statement at the time. His version of the bill also sought to block taxpayer funding for such care, including coverage under the Affordable Care Act; banning universities from providing instruction on health care for transgender people; and deeming noncitizens who have supported such procedures ineligible to receive visas or admittance to the U.S.
Vance’s proposed bill contradicts the recommendation of every major medical association and leading health authority in the world, all of which support health care for transgender people and youth and which are increasingly speaking out against disinformation being spread by those opposed to such case. 30+ statements here.
Vance opposed the Respect for Marriage Act which enshrined federal protections for marriages of same-sex and interracial couples, calling such protections “a bizarre distraction.”
In June 2024, Vance voted against a bill to enshrine access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF).
Trump’s policies and efforts against access to reproductive health care include:
Nominating three anti-choice justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, creating a majority to overturn Roe v. Wade, endangering patients, families, and safe medical care across the country.
Bragging that he is responsible for overturning Roe: “If it weren’t for me, with Roe v. Wade, you wouldn’t even be talking about this stuff. For 54 years they were trying to get Roe v. Wade terminated, and I did it and I’m proud to have done it,” Trump said.
Recommitting to criminalizing abortion telling Time that he would not intervene in decisions to monitor or prosecute pregnant people.
Refusing to say whether his second administration would enforce the Comstock Act, an 1873 “zombie law” that bans the mailing of birth control and abortion medication.
Trump claims his current position on abortion is that “now that we have abortion where everyone wanted it from a legal standpoint, the states will determine by vote or legislation, or perhaps both. And whatever they decide must be the law of the land. In this case, the law of the state.” In the same video he made the baseless claim that Democrats want to legalize the “execution” of babies that were already born, which is not true.
Trump has committed to more extreme and far-reaching health care policies in a second administration:
In an official campaign video, Trump promised on day one to “revoke” existing policies supporting health care for transgender people and youth, calling such care “chemical, physical, and emotional mutilation”.
He has pledged to sign a new executive order instructing every federal agency to “cease all programs that promote the concept of sex and gender transition at any age.”
Trump promised to ask Congress to permanently ban the use of federal funds to promote or pay for health care for transgender Americans, without distinguishing between care for adults or minors.
Trump’s current proposals would terminate Medicare and Medicaid funding for hospitals and providers that provide health care to transgender youth.
Under Trump’s leadership, the Justice Department and Department of Education will investigate hospitals, health care providers, and/or schools and teachers that attempt to support transgender people.
Trump stated that he ‘will ask Congress to pass a bill establishing that the only genders recognized by the United States government are male and female — and they are assigned at birth – which would erase transgender and nonbinary people out of legal existence.
The 2024 Republican Party platform refers to “radical gender ideology,” “gender indoctrination,” and “gender insanity” when referring to the intention to strip funding from programs supporting transgender health care.
Trump’s administration in his one-term presidency was filled with activists from the anti-LGBTQ national organization Heritage Foundation. Heritage and others have created “Project 2025,” a playbook for the next President of the United States:
The document details regulations and executive orders to be taken in first days in office, including: “deleting [from federal agencies and federal rule] the terms sexual orientation and gender identity (“SOGI”), diversity, equity, and inclusion, gender, gender equality, gender equity, gender awareness, gender-sensitive, abortion, reproductive health, reproductive rights.”
GLAAD’s 2024 Voter Poll shows:
81% of likely 2024 voters, 83% of swing voters, and 73% of Trump voters agree that health care decisions for transgender youth should be made by parents.
A majority of all registered and likely 2024 voters say they would oppose “a political candidate [who] speaks frequently about restricting access to health care and participation in sports for transgender youth.
All voter categories – LGBTQ, registered, Trump voters, and swing voters who say they vote for either party – overwhelmingly agree that “Republicans should stop focusing on restricting women’s rights and banning medical care for transgender youth and instead focus on addressing inflation, job creation, and healthcare costs.” 94% of LGBTQ voters, 76% of registered voters, 76% of likely 2024 voters, and 82% of swing voters agree.
72% of LGBTQ survey respondents said they experience negative impacts to their mental health and emotional well-being caused by the current state of political discourse in our country.
According to the 2022 U.S. Transgender Survey, transgender Americans have long faced discrimination in health care, from insurance issues to verbal harassment, refusal of treatment, or interaction with a health care provider who did not know how to properly treat transgender individuals. Survey participants also reported being denied routine health and sexual health screenings. The survey also found that those who are transgender are more likely than the general U.S. population to be uninsured.
For details on Trump’s specific record on abortion and women, visit https://glaad.org/fact-sheet-trump-abortion/. For a comprehensive guide on best practices for covering the 2024 elections, visit https://glaad.org/tag/election-2024/.
