A federal judge has given the Donald Trump administration until 11:59 p.m. February 11th to restore LGBTQ+-inclusive informational pages that were recently removed from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) websites. The pages, which included critical data on LGBTQ+ youth, sexual health, contraception, and gender-affirming care, were reportedly taken down as part of the administration’s efforts to comply with former President Donald Trump’s executive orders targeting “gender ideology” and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
According to reports, more than 80,000 pages were removed from over a dozen U.S. government websites, including those from the CDC, following the release of these orders. Among the content that disappeared were essential resources for healthcare providers, such as guidelines on birth control and clinical recommendations for managing sexual health and gender-affirming care. Other pages, including those related to HIV prevention and vaccines, were also removed.
The controversy surrounding the removal of these pages has sparked criticism from public health advocates and professionals in the healthcare industry. These pages, which included valuable clinical data, are used by healthcare workers nationwide to inform research, improve patient care, and guide real-time clinical decision-making. The removal of such critical information has left many medical professionals scrambling to find reliable data and guidance for their work.
A memo from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued on January 29 directed all federal agencies to remove any public-facing media that “inculcate or promote gender ideology” by January 31, further escalating concerns among healthcare professionals. Despite some pages, like the CDC’s Atlas Tool tracking HIV and STIs, being partially restored, many of these resources are less functional than they were prior to their removal.
The removal of these pages has led to a lawsuit filed by the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, on behalf of the nonprofit organization Doctors for America. The lawsuit, filed on February 4, accuses the Trump administration of violating the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), both of which require advance notice and public explanations for the removal of data. The lawsuit claims that the removal of these resources has harmed the essential work of healthcare professionals, particularly those working with marginalized communities.
U.S. District Judge John D. Bates, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, sided with Public Citizen and Doctors for America, ruling that the removal of the pages caused “irreparable harm” to healthcare providers and their patients. In his ruling, Bates emphasized that the pages were more than just academic resources—they were critical tools for healthcare providers making decisions in hospitals, clinics, and emergency departments across the country.
“The lost materials are vital for real-time clinical decision-making,” Bates wrote in his decision, according to Ars Technica. “Without them, health care providers and researchers are left without up-to-date recommendations on managing infectious diseases, public health threats, essential preventive care, and chronic conditions.” Bates added that underprivileged Americans, in particular, were suffering from the removal of these vital resources.
As part of the ruling, Bates directed the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)—which oversees both the CDC and the FDA—to restore the pages identified in the lawsuit. He also ordered HHS to work with Doctors for America to identify any additional pages critical to healthcare providers that had been removed.
Zachary Shelley, an attorney with Public Citizen, praised the ruling but acknowledged that the damage had already been done. “You can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube that has already come out,” Shelley said, according to The Hill. “You can stop it from flowing out going forward. Every day that this goes on, there’s harm to the doctors and their patients and public health.”
It remains unclear whether the Trump administration will comply with the judge’s order. Several administration officials have previously signaled their intention not to follow court rulings, raising questions about who will enforce the court’s decision and whether the pages will be restored as directed.
The legal battle highlights the ongoing tension between public health advocacy and political agendas, as well as the broader debate over the inclusion of LGBTQ+ health information in government resources. As the legal proceedings unfold, many healthcare professionals are left anxiously waiting to see whether the critical resources will be restored in time to support ongoing public health efforts.
