Politics
Gov’t shutdown impacts HIV/AIDS programs, LGBT fed’l workers
Loss of oversight for Ryan White grants as 818,000 employees placed on furlough
As the shutdown begins, key programs related to HIV/AIDS are affected. (Washington Blade file photo by Michael Key).
The federal government shutdown is impacting certain services related to HIV/AIDS programs and LGBT federal employees are among hundreds of thousands furloughed on Tuesday.
The shutdown began at midnight on Tuesday after Congress failed to pass a budget that would continue funding the federal government after the start of fiscal year 2014.
The Republican-controlled House passed several resolutions that would continue to fund the government, but would also repeal portions of health care reform or delay its implementation. The Democratic-controlled Senate refused each proposal, stripping out the language related to the Affordable Care Act and insisting on legislation that would only fund the government.
Although certain federal government functions will continue, such as the U.S. Postal Service and programs related to national security, programs and offices that have closed include the National Park Service, the Environmental Protection Agency and housing vouchers from the Department of Housing & Urban Development, according to the Washington Post.
Key programs for people with HIV/AIDS are among the programs affected by the government shutdown. According to a shutdown plan from the Department of Health & Human Services, the cut off of federal funds means a loss of oversight for Ryan White AIDS Grants, a freeze in new medical research at the National Institutes of Health and no more updates for treatment and prevention recommendations for HIV at the Centers for Disease Control.
The guidance takes note of how the discontinuation of oversight from Health Resources & Services Administration will have a negative impact on programs related to Ryan White, which provides medication to low-income people with HIV/AIDS.
“Monitoring of Ryan White grants – particularly AIDS Drug Assistance Program Grants, Emergency Relief Grants and Comprehensive Care would be insufficient to assure states, cities and communities are complying with statutory guidance and necessary performance,” the guidance states.
Winnie Stachelberg, executive vice president for external affairs at the Center for American Progress, blamed the right-wing of the Republican Party for the negative impact on these HIV/AIDS programs.
“The Tea Party Republicans are playing irresponsible politics with men, women and children living with HIV and AIDS,” Stachelberg said.
Michael Cole-Schwartz, spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign, said the situation for HIV/AIDS programs isn’t yet dire because they’re by-and-large grant funded and won’t face a loss of funds for some time.
“Many of the grants… are on an April 1-March 31 cycle and won’t be immediately impacted by the shutdown,” Cole-Schwartz said. “That said, there is uncertainty about the FY 14 funding levels and the impact this will have on grantees for the next grant cycle.”
Cole-Schwartz also said there are LGBT-related implications to the shutdown because furloughing may impact the enforcement efforts at the Justice Department for hate crimes and Title IX cases involving LGBT students.
Issues related to these programs under the government shutdown are basically the same as the ones they faced under sequestration, but magnified because the funding level has gone from significantly reduced to potentially zero.
It’s unclear when Congress will come to an agreement to continue funding for the government. House Republicans have proposed a conference committee to iron out the differences between the different versions of the legislation, which would likely mean some give on health care reform.
But Senate Democrats are refusing to conference and insisting the House pass a measure that funds the government. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said late Monday night, “We will not go to conference with a gun to our head.”
Gregory Angelo, executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, declined to assign blame for the shutdown, but said a “compromise” is in order. His group had joined conservative organizations in calling health care reform “tyrannical.”
“Don’t think for an instant that anyone wanted a government shutdown,” Angelo said. “Whether the House GOP votes or Harry Reid’s stubbornness were prudent or not is immaterial at this point — the fact is we are in the midst of a shutdown that Democrats are as responsible for as Republicans. We hope it’s resolved soon with a compromise that gets this country back on track.”
Even though the government has shut down, the health care reform law that Republicans had sought to thwart became effective the same day other services stopped because funds to start it up were already appropriated. Open enrollment into health insurance exchanges began today as well as the Medicaid expansion for states that elected to participate. That’s significant because most people who receive HIV/AIDS medications through federal assistance get them through Medicaid.
Rea Carey, executive director of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force, slammed Republicans for halting the government over a law that she said would afford significant help to LGBT Americans.
“This tantrum could end up costing our nation billions of dollars and will negatively affect the most marginalized in our society,” Carey said. “The truth is, the Affordable Care Act will help ensure access to health care for millions of Americans who are uninsured — including many lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people who desperately need it. Health care delayed is health care denied. And health care denied is putting lives in jeopardy.”
Meanwhile, LGBT workers are among the more than 818,000 federal workers estimated by the Wall Street Journal deemed “non-essential” and placed on furlough while the government is shut down.
Leonard Hirsch, president of the LGBT affinity group known as Federal GLOBE, said conservative denigration of federal workers and continual worries over funds and government shutdown has made work difficult to complete for all workers.
“We are all working to fulfill our mission for an effective administration of the laws of the land,” Hirsch said. “We worry about the lasting impacts on our economy and on our international standing. Having multiple years without real budgets, and discussion of yet another full year omnibus is destructive. It makes developing new initiatives difficult if not impossible.”
Shin Inouye, a White House spokesperson, is among the federal employees placed on furlough and was unable to answer questions about the government shutdown for the Washington Blade.
Robyn McCutcheon, president of Gays & Lesbians in Foreign Affairs Agencies, or GLIFAA, said for the time being work for LGBT employees in the State Department continues, although there are limitations.
“We are given to understand that State has sufficient operating funds for these initial days and that all employees are expected to report to work as usual,” McCutcheon said. “There has been guidance that in the interim, there should be no new travel, no representational events, and so on.”
Still, McCutcheon said LGBT State Department employees worry the situation may change if Congress doesn’t come to a resolution about continued funding for the government.
“GLIFAA shares the concerns and worries of all government employees over what will happen should the shutdown continue,” McCutcheon said.
The White House
HRC files class action over federal ban on gender-affirming care coverage
Lawsuit filed Monday challenges White House effort to restrict care
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the nonprofit sister organization to the largest LGBTQ human rights lobbying and advocacy organization in the U.S., along with law firms Correia & Puth and Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll, filed a class action lawsuit against the government as it attempts to restrict gender-affirming healthcare for federal employees.
The suit, filed on Monday, alleges that the Office of Personnel Management, run by Trump appointee Scott Kupor, is discriminating against LGBTQ federal employees (and their families and retired employees) by prohibiting health insurance coverage for gender-affirming care under the Federal Employees Health Benefits and Postal Service Health Benefits plans. There are five plaintiffs named in the complaint, but it extends to others who have those healthcare plans.
The document asserts that OPM’s prohibition on coverage for “gender transition” care in the FEHB and PSHB programs violates Title VII, the federal law that prohibits discrimination based on sex, race, color, religion, or national origin.
The policy, which was implemented on Jan. 1 following the 2025 issuing of Program Carrier Letter, mandated that insurance providers in these programs deny any coverage for gender-affirming care. In February, HRC filed a federal complaint with OPM over the change in healthcare policy, which was ultimately passed to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for review. That complaint is now an officially filed class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Research from the Williams Institute at UCLA Law, a think tank that collects data and conducts research on issues related to sexual orientation and gender identity, indicates that this policy denying gender-affirming care will impact healthcare access for at least 39,400 current and former federal employees and their dependents.
Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson released a statement following the lawsuit’s filing.
“Our message to the Trump administration is simple: we’ll see you in court,” said Robinson. “Healthcare access should never be weaponized to advance discrimination — and the denial of coverage for critical healthcare based simply on who you are blatantly violates the rights of all of us.”
Gender-affirming care has been under constant attack by the Trump-Vance administration since its return to the White House, despite the practice being considered as extensively evidence-based but also supported by nearly every major medical organization. This type of care is provided to all people—not just transgender people—and includes things such as social affirmation, including using correct names and pronouns and wearing clothing that matches a person’s gender identity; mental health support, such as counseling to reduce depression and anxiety; and, in some cases, medical interventions such as reversible puberty blockers or hormone therapy when deemed medically appropriate.
“Federal employees have been through the wringer with the Trump administration,” said Cathy Harris, partner at Correia & Puth. “We draw the line at blatant discrimination to deny healthcare to our nation’s dedicated civil servants.”
“This odious policy is the latest example of the Trump administration’s obsession with targeting transgender people, using shameful and cruel tactics to threaten their employment, their health, and the well-being of themselves and their families,” Robinson added. “OPM’s actions will not go unchallenged, and we’ll continue to fight so that federal employees and their families receive the dignity they deserve.”
This is not the first time the White House has directly attacked gender-affirming care.
In January 2025, the administration issued Executive Order 14187, titled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation.” The order directs federal agencies to restrict gender-affirming medical care — including puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries — for individuals under the age of 19.
For more information on how to get involved with the lawsuit, visit hrc.org.
Politics
Buttigieg indicates he may run for president in 2028
Former Transportation Secretary was in Biden-Harris administration’s Cabinet
Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told a podcaster he is considering throwing his hat in the ring for president once again.
“I don’t know,” Buttigieg told Steven Bartlett, the British host of The Diary of a CEO, the most popular top business and tech podcast on Spotify, which aired Monday. “I think I’m more inclined than not, but there’s so much we don’t know.”
“There’s so much I don’t even know about what’s going to happen this year, let alone … what we need to know later,” he added.
Buttigieg is no stranger to running for the Oval Office.
In 2019, the former South Bend, Ind., mayor was a serious contender in the Democratic primary for the 2020 presidential election but ultimately ended his campaign and endorsed Joe Biden.
In May, an Emerson College Polling survey found Buttigieg at the top of the list of potential presidential contenders, leading California Gov. Gavin Newsom, New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and others.
In addition to discussing his future in federal politics, Buttigieg also discussed President Donald Trump’s handling of the Iran war — which reached its 5-month mark two weeks ago — the changing landscape of U.S. jobs due to the rise of artificial intelligence, and the growing national debt, all issues he could face if he ultimately returns to the White House.
Following his 2020 presidential campaign, Buttigieg gained prominence within the Democratic Party, eventually leading to his confirmation as Transportation Secretary. In February 2021, he became the first openly gay Cabinet member to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
In addition to his experience as an elected official, the 44-year-old served as a Navy intelligence officer in the reserves from 2009-2017, including a seven-month deployment to Afghanistan in 2014. Buttigieg came out as gay in 2015 and later married his husband, Chasten Glezman, in 2018. The couple now has two children: twins.
Buttigieg also has an extensive educational background.
He graduated from Harvard University with a bachelor’s degree in history and literature and later became a Rhodes Scholar, attending the University of Oxford, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, politics, and economics.
This is not the first time Buttigieg has made headlines this year.
In June, he went public about being falsely accused of posing a threat to his children’s safety. An anonymous police report claimed he was a danger to his 4-year-old twins and was not allowed to be with them until after police interviews were conducted.
The police report was later determined to be false. The Washington Blade reached out to the Michigan State Police to ask what course of action, if any, would be taken against the woman who filed the false report, but the agency did not answer the question.
The Blade reached out to Buttigieg’s team for comment on his potential 2028 presidential bid, but did not hear back before publication.
Congress
House blocks effort to codify transgender servicemember ban into law
Lawmakers approved two anti-trans NDAA amendments
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have codified a ban transgender servicemembers in the military.
The bipartisan vote was 212-217.
The NDAA is for the 2027 fiscal year and sets policies for the Defense Department programs and activities and the national security programs of the Department of Energy.
U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) proposed the amendment on July 21. It stated that all personnel are required to serve in accordance with their biological sex, citing military readiness and discipline.
Human Rights Campaign Senior Director of Government Affairs Jennifer Pike Bailey stated that she is grateful for the bipartisan vote that rejected President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s “dangerous and discriminatory policy that has kicked brave transgender servicemembers out of the military and weakened our national security.”
“Everyone who meets the same rigorous standards should be able to serve their country. We should honor that patriotism, particularly in this moment where we are witnessing brave servicemembers making the ultimate sacrifice for our country, instead of ending their careers and politicizing their existence. We’re grateful that a permanent extension of this ban failed, and we will keep fighting to reverse this senseless policy,” Bailey said.
Mark Takano, chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus, stated that he and his members put in countless hours of work to kill the amendment.
“When Americans know they or their families are going to be targeted by or not supported by the military, that leads them to avoid signing up to serve or staying in the service — making it harder to keep the ranks of the armed services full and our nation safe. My colleagues in the Equality Caucus and I will continue working to prevent these attacks on our servicemembers and their families from becoming law,” Takano said.
According to the Congressional Equality Caucus, two other bills could potentially be passed that would also target the transgender community, both of which were proposed by U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.).
The first was a bill that would have prohibited gender-related medical care under TRICARE and to prevent TRICARE from covering certain gender-related medical procedures and treatments, which was approved in a vote of 219-208.
The second was a bill that would have prohibited male participation in female sports at DoDEA schools. DoDEA schools are Department of Defense Dependents Schools, which is a network of primary and secondary schools.
The amendment was approved in a vote of 221-203.
Don’t miss summer productions at Clear Space in Rehoboth Beach
New LGBTQ visitor center slated for Wilmington, Del.
PHOTOS: World Pride March
Tens of thousands take part in World Pride March
PHOTOS: Daddy Issues at Kiki
Continue to engage in community after Pride month
D.C.’s Mary’s House For Older Adults names new executive director
Suzanne Goode is not good for Rehoboth Beach
Calendar: August 7-13
