MO attorney general launches investigation into St. Louis transgender center, alleging it harms children

ST. LOUIS (KMOV) -- Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey launched an investigation into the Washington University Pediatric Transgender Center at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, alleging staff there have harmed hundreds of kids.

Bailey launched the investigation two weeks ago after a whistleblower who worked there as a case manager claimed the center was causing permanent harm to its patients. A sworn affidavit released Thursday identifies the whistleblower as Jamie Reed, who worked at the center from 2018 until November 2022.

Reed alleges the center used puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones without the complete informed consent of the parents of children getting treatment. She says she saw injuries from medication, and that the center did not track adverse effects after the children left.

News 4 reached out to a spokesperson for St. Louis Children’s Hospital, who directed to a statement from Washington University on the matter. The statement says the allegations are being looked into.

“We are alarmed by the allegations reported in the article published by The Free Press describing practices and behaviors the author says she witnessed while employed at the university’s Transgender Center. We are taking this matter very seriously and have already begun the process of looking into the situation to ascertain the facts. As always, our highest priority is the health and well-being of our patients. We are committed to providing compassionate, family-centered care to all of our patients and we hold our medical practitioners to the highest professional and ethical standards.”

The center’s website says its mission is “to provide all-encompassing care to kids and young adults who identify as transgender, gender non-conforming, non-binary or genderqueer.” The Washington University School of Medicine’s Division of Endocrinology and Division of Adolescent Medicine formed the Transgender Center in 2017, a year before Reed began working there.

The affidavit was signed on Tuesday. You can read the full text below, released Thursday by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office. The office said in a press release that there is documentation to support Reed’s allegations. The Missouri Department of Social Services and Division of Professional Registration are assisting the investigation.

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