Department of Health and Human Services deletes mental health report on Utah's transgender children
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has quietly deleted reports tracking the mental health of transgender youth in Utah from its webpage, the Salt Lake Tribune reports. HHS did not delete reports using the same datasets to evaluate the mental health of cisgender youth who were straight, gay, bisexual, and unsure in the state.
The 'Utah Student Health and Risk Prevention' (SHARP) survey asks students to answer questions about their health and well-being. In 2023, 51,890 students took the voluntary survey in grades six, eight, 10, and 12. Of those students who responded to the question asking if they were transgender, 729, or 1.4 percent, responded affirmatively, although children in grade six were not asked about their gender identity.
Related: White House gender-affirming care post is full of lies
The compiled datasets were evaluated and available in 'Transgender Student Profile Report[s]' on the Utah Office of Substance Use and Mental Health on February 2, but disappeared by March 4, the Tribune reports.
'Your willingness to participate has helped families and communities throughout the state in many different ways,' the SHARP website says of the survey. 'The knowledge we've gained from the SHARP survey is invaluable – because it tells us where to look for problems and solutions.'
Related: Controversial Trump HHS report targets care for trans kids
The data had also been deleted from the website of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), until a federal judge ordered the data to be restored online. The CDC now issues the following disclaimer on its website.
'Per a court order, HHS is required to restore this website as of 11:59 p.m. ET, February 11, 2025,' the site notes. 'Any information on this page promoting gender ideology is extremely inaccurate and disconnected from the immutable biological reality that there are two sexes, male and female. The Trump Administration rejects gender ideology and condemns the harms it causes to children, by promoting their chemical and surgical mutilation, and to women, by depriving them of their dignity, safety, well-being, and opportunities. This page does not reflect biological reality and therefore the Administration and this Department rejects it.'
Related: HHS launches 'whistleblower' portal targeting trans kids
The compiled data showed warning signs for transgender children, with roughly 60 percent saying they had contemplated death by suicide in the previous year, while nearly 25 percent reported they had attempted to die by suicide.
Ilan Meyer, a distinguished senior scholar at the Williams Institute at UCLA, which studies gender and sexual identity issues and policies, cautioned that the climate for the well-being and mental health of transgender children will not get better by denying their existence.
Related: Trump administration to defund suicide hotline for LGBTQ+ youth starting in October
'Whatever it is that LGBT youth are going through is continuing, and just not knowing something doesn't really address the underlying problem,' Meyer, of the Williams Institute, told the Tribune. 'By not knowing, you're not going to be able to address it at all. And maybe that's the point.'
If you or someone you know needs mental health resources and support, please call, text, or chat with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline or visit 988lifeline.org for 24/7 access to free and confidential services. Trans Lifeline, designed for transgender or gender-nonconforming people, can be reached at (877) 565-8860. The lifeline also provides resources to help with other crises, such as domestic violence situations. The Trevor Project Lifeline, for LGBTQ+ youth (ages 24 and younger), can be reached at (866) 488-7386. Users can also access chat services at TheTrevorProject.org/Help or text START to 678678.
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Mahler's report criticized the drugging of seniors in care facilities, asserting that older persons are 'more likely to be deprived of liberty in care facilities than in prisons.' She further warned that antipsychotic use in dementia can double the risk of death.[2] Although the National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes reported a reduction in antipsychotic use among long-stay residents—from 30.1% in 2011 to 14.5% by the end of 2021—those figures obscure concerning patterns of diagnosis manipulation. For instance, some nursing homes labeled seniors with schizophrenia, a diagnosis virtually unheard of in the elderly, to continue prescribing antipsychotics despite federal restrictions.[3] Federal Warnings Ignored, Harm Continues Warnings about the dangers of these drugs have spanned decades. 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In 2005, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a black-box warning linking antipsychotics to death in dementia patients prompting some prescribers to sidestep restrictions by re-diagnosing patients.[6] Between 2015 and 2019, schizophrenia diagnoses among nursing home residents rose 194%—an implausible increase, attributed to efforts to preserve prescribing authority.[7] In 2021, a New York Times investigation revealed that 21% of residents were still being given antipsychotics, often based on unsupported or false diagnoses. In 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services launched new measures to identify facilities inflating diagnostic codes to justify drug use—but the problem persists.[8] Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) pharmaceutical advertising has also fueled drug overuse among seniors. A 2021 study found that television ads heavily influenced seniors' prescription decisions, especially in areas with high Medicare enrollment. Between 2006 and 2017, $528 million was spent promoting one antipsychotic.[9] In June 2025, the End Prescription Drug Ads Now Act was introduced to ban DTCA. Psychotropic drug use in long-term care facilities is a human rights crisis. Studies show that roughly 16% of nursing home residents experience abuse, yet only 1 in 24 cases is reported. Disturbingly, up to 40% of staff admit to having psychologically abused residents.[10] Reforms Urgently Needed The ongoing harm inflicted on elderly residents is not an isolated lapse but a failure of oversight, ethics, and accountability, tantamount to elder abuse. CCHR urges U.S. legislators and regulators to implement such reforms as: 'What's happening in nursing homes today is not care—it's chemical control and a national disgrace,' said Jan Eastgate, President of CCHR International. 'Our seniors are not being treated—they're being sedated for convenience, often at the cost of their lives.' About CCHR: CCHR, established in 1969 by the Church of Scientology and professor of psychiatry Dr. Thomas Szasz, urges Congress and state legislatures to outlaw chemical restraints in aged care and demand accountability from prescribers and nursing homes. 'The nation's elderly deserve compassion and safety, not sedation, and dignity not death by prescription,' Eastgate said. To learn more, visit: Sources: [1] Poliakoff & Associates, P.A., 'Nursing Home Oversight and Antipsychotic Drug Use,' 12 June 2025, [2] ''Chemical Restraints' Deprive Older People of Liberty,' Human Rights Watch, 19 Sept. 2022, [3] 'Brown Study Challenges Common Perceptions of Antipsychotic Use in Nursing Homes,' Brown University School of Public Health, 5 Sept. 2024, [4] Testimony by Dr. David Graham, House Hearing, 110th Congress – The Adequacy of FDA to Assure the Safety of the Nation's Drug Supply General, 13 Feb. 2007, p. 66 [5] Peter C. Gøtzsche, 'Prescription Drugs Are the Leading Cause of Death,' Brownstone Institute, 16 Apr. 2024, [6] 'Phony Diagnoses Hide High Rates of Drugging at Nursing Homes,' The New York Times, 16 Sept. 2021, [7] 'Long-Term Trends of Psychotropic Drug Use in Nursing Homes,' Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General, 11 Nov. 2022, [8] 'Phony Diagnoses Hide High Rates of Drugging at Nursing Homes,' The New York Times, 16 Sept. 2021, [9] 'Physicians Treating Alzheimer's Disease Patients Should Be Aware that Televised Direct-to-Consumer Advertising Links More Strongly to Drug Utilization in Older Patients,' Jour. Alzheimers Dis. June 2021, [10] 'Elder Abuse Statistics,' 19 May 2025, MULTIMEDIA: Image link for media Image caption: 'Psychotropic drugs are being used to sedate, restrain, and silence, and, as such, are a tool of oppression. CCHR asserts that this practice meets the legal definition of elder abuse and must be treated as a criminal offense.' – Jan Eastgate, President CCHR International. NEWS SOURCE: Citizens Commission on Human Rights Keywords: General Editorial, CCHR, Nursing Homes, Dementia Care, Chemical Restraint, Citizens Commission on Human Rights International, LOS ANGELES, Calif. This press release was issued on behalf of the news source (Citizens Commission on Human Rights) who is solely responsibile for its accuracy, by Send2Press® Newswire. Information is believed accurate but not guaranteed. Story ID: S2P127084 APNF0325A To view the original version, visit: © 2025 Send2Press® Newswire, a press release distribution service, Calif., USA. RIGHTS GRANTED FOR REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART BY ANY LEGITIMATE MEDIA OUTLET - SUCH AS NEWSPAPER, BROADCAST OR TRADE PERIODICAL. MAY NOT BE USED ON ANY NON-MEDIA WEBSITE PROMOTING PR OR MARKETING SERVICES OR CONTENT DEVELOPMENT. Disclaimer: This press release content was not created by nor issued by the Associated Press (AP). Content below is unrelated to this news story.


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