HHS Launches Probe into Firing of Whistleblower Nurse Over Child Gender Treatments

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has launched an investigation into a prominent pediatric hospital after a nurse was allegedly terminated for refusing, on religious grounds, to administer puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to minors.

Acting HHS Office for Civil Rights Director Anthony Archeval stated that the agency is committed to protecting whistleblowers and ensuring healthcare workers aren’t forced to act against their religious or moral convictions. While HHS hasn’t officially named the hospital, the focus is widely believed to be on Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH), the nation's largest pediatric hospital. This comes hot on the heels of nurse Vanessa Sivadge’s testimony before Congress, where she described her firing after raising the alarm about gender-related treatments given to children.

Sivadge, who went public in June 2024, told lawmakers she witnessed "disturbing trends and concerning practices" at the hospital, especially regarding care for children diagnosed with gender dysphoria. She described seeing "powerful and irreversible effects" from treatments that were presented to families as lifesaving. According to Sivadge, doctors sometimes pressured parents by warning that failure to affirm their child’s gender identity could lead to self-harm. She recalled young girls with deep mental health struggles—even some who’d suffered trauma—being steered toward hormone therapies as a solution.

Dr. Eithan Haim, another whistleblower, accused TCH of concealing its transgender program and manipulating billing records to hide procedures on minors. He alleged that mastectomies were coded as "breast reductions" and testosterone prescriptions for teen girls were billed as male diagnoses. Haim faced legal pressure from the Biden administration for alleged HIPAA violations, but those charges were later dropped.

Sivadge also recounted that federal agents visited her home during the Haim investigation, allegedly pressuring her to compromise her Christian beliefs and making veiled threats about her career. Her attorney filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in April 2025, accusing TCH doctors of rushing into "dangerous and often irreversible" gender-affirming treatments for minors.

The complaint notes that TCH "temporarily" paused such treatments after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton declared them potentially abusive in 2022. A statewide ban followed in 2023. Sivadge requested a transfer to the cardiology department in May 2024, citing her religious beliefs, but was soon placed on administrative leave after going public with her concerns. She was officially terminated by August 2024, with TCH claiming she was fired for improperly accessing medical records.

On January 28, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender treatments for minors, leading HHS to issue new whistleblower protection guidelines. Both TCH and HHS have been contacted for comment, but have yet to respond.