WASHINGTON, D.C. (LifeSiteNews) — The Trump administration has sent letters to all 50 states warning that children may not be removed from their family homes by state welfare agencies solely because their parents decline to support a child’s self-identification as the opposite sex.
The letter from Health and Human Services Department’s Administration for Children and Families (ACF) reinforces that state child welfare agencies must base child removal decisions on objective evidence of abuse or imminent risk of serious harm under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA).
The letter follows troubling reports of states removing children when parents declined to support their child’s self-identification as another sex.
“At his State of the Union address, President Trump shared the story of Sage Blair, a young woman who was separated from her parents at the age of 14 after school officials attempted to secretly ‘transition’ her to a male,” recounted Admiral Brian Christine, M.D., Assistant Secretary for Health at HHS, in a video message posted on social media.
“Surely, we can all agree no state can be allowed to rip children from their parents’ arms and transition them to a new gender against the parents’ will,” said Trump during his address. “We must ban it and we must ban it immediately.”
“Our President exposed the reality of what is taking place in some of our schools across the country. In response, HHS is sending a clear and unequivocal message to all 50 states about cases like that of Sage Blair: Acknowledging biological reality and exercising sincerely held religious beliefs should not constitute child abuse or neglect under federal law,” he explained.
At @HHSGov, we will not stand for states removing children from their families and transitioning them to a new gender against the parents’ will. Along with @ADM_Christine, we will keep families together whenever it is safe to do so.
This week, we notified all 50 states that… pic.twitter.com/yiZjPhf31L
— Alex J. Adams, PharmD, MPH (@ACF_Adams) March 4, 2026
According to a statement from ACF, the letter warns states not to interpret federal definitions too broadly in ways that infringe on parental rights or lead to unnecessary foster placements by removing children for reasons that do not constitute abuse and neglect.
ACF also reminded states that removing a child based solely on a parent’s sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions may raise serious constitutional concerns, including violations of the free exercise of religion.
“Parents have the right to raise their children according to their sincerely held religious beliefs and moral convictions,” said ACF Assistant Secretary Alex J. Adams, cautioning that “when states overstep their bounds, ACF will take action to deter inappropriate policies that drive unnecessary interactions with child welfare systems.”
“A state’s decision to break up a family cannot be based solely on a parent’s objection to radical gender ideology or irreversible, sex-rejecting medical interventions,” said Adams.
“Our letter encourages states to adopt clearer definitions of abuse and neglect that explicitly protect parents’ rights to raise children consistent with their biological sex,” he added.
ACF promised to continue to monitor states’ compliance with federal child welfare requirements and to take appropriate action to ensure federal funds are used consistent with the law.
LifeSiteNews reached out to ACF for a copy of its letter, which has not been publicly circulated, but had not received a response by time of publication.
