When the Trump Administration announced today, Thursday Dec. 18, that he would take steps to order the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to end transition-related care for sex change operations, the proposals would effectively pull funding away from offering transgender care to minors.
These actions are the President’s latest efforts to restrict access to transgender care.
In the first few weeks of his second term, President Trump issued executive orders targeting the trans community saying that he was going to bar federal funding to hospitals to provide transition-related care to minors.
Though the HHS has declared that there is little evidence that gender-affirming care for minors is a concern, the majority of U.S. medical associations support access to such care and condemn efforts to restrict it, reported NBC news.
A clinic in Fresno addresses just those concerns. The Fresno Collective for Inclusive Medicine Inc. prides itself on offering a full range of healthcare services in a welcoming, trauma-informed and gender-affirming environment. Members of the LGBTQ+ community are welcome to walk through the doors for a check-up and will receive gender-affirming care with respect and in a judgement-free zone.
As stated on their web site: “Our team listens, explains and supports you in making decisions that feel right for your health and life.”
Fresno Inclusive is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Their web site states that they accept most insurance plans.
Their services include, gynecology, pediatric care, and electrolysis (permanent hair removal). Fresno Inclusive will soon start to provide primary care services as well.
Fresno Inclusive was founded by Dr. Julie Nicole and Dr. Sam Schmitz, two physicians who wanted to create a clinic where the LGBTQ+ community in Fresno, their allies and anyone who has felt neglected or underserved by the healthcare system, could access treatment without fear, shame or judgment.
The clinic has grown since and was officially incorporated in October 2024. A year later, they started offering telehealth (February 2025) and in June they opened a permanent location.
Their web site can be found at www.fresnoinclusive.com which provides its own patient portal run by Athena Health.
Fresno Inclusive provides:
- A welcoming space for LGBTQ+ community, allies and anyone who has ever felt left out or unseen in healthcare
- Queer-owned and community-led, with roots in Fresno with a vision that puts people first
- Providers who truly listen, care about your story, meet you where you are without judgement
- A focus on access and affordability
NBC news reports that an estimated 724,000 youth in the U.S. ages 13 to 17 identify as transgender, about 3.3 percent.
Just a day before the HHS announcement, the House passed a bill that would charge doctors with a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison if they provide gender-affirming care for minors. The bill is expected to die in the Senate but marks the harshest federal penalty for doctors providing transition-related care to minors ever passed by the House. Another bill is expected to be voted on in Congress that would prohibit Medicaid from covering gender transition procedures for anyone under the age of 18.
“Allowing the government to determine which patient groups deserve care is a dangerous precedent,” said Dr. Susan Kressly, President of the American Academy of Pediatrics, in an emailed statement. “Children and families will bear the consequences.”
The Fresno Collective for Inclusive Medicine is located at 3032 Tulare Street. You may contact them to schedule an appointment at (559) 889-3246.
