In New Zealand news:

The Ministry of Health is urging doctors to take a “precautionary approach” before prescribing puberty blockers, as the Government moves to limit access to the medications.

Those moves came as the ministry released a highly anticipated evidence brief about the use of puberty blockers, which said there was insufficient evidence supporting their use.

The Ministry of Health also announced new rules, effective immediately, for prescribing puberty blockers. It told doctors that they should be prescribed only be clinicians working as part of “an interprofessional team offering a full range of supports to young people presenting with gender identity issues”.

Puberty blockers are medications prescribed to young transgender patients.

No, they’re not. They’re not medications. They’re something else. They’re attempts to alleviate psychological suffering (at best), but they’re not medical attempts. There is no medical illness that requires puberty blockers as medication.

There has been growing debate internationally about the efficacy, safety, physical and mental outcomes of these medications.

Debate which is not helped by journalism’s endless failures to be precise with the language. They’re not “medications” so much as they’re throwing things at the wall to see what sticks. Puberty blockers are medications when prescribed for children with too-early puberty. When prescribed for “the wrong” puberty they’re a scary reckless fad rather than a med.

Children’s Minister Karen Chhour said “using medication to deal with gender identity issues can have permanent effects that do real long-term harm”.

What I’m saying. Gender identity issues are in the mind; using medication to deal with them is a category error.

H/t Rob