On Thursday afternoon, parents of kids who once received gender-affirming healthcare from Mount Sinai got surprise calls from the hospital advising them that the network would be sharing their children's medical records with the Trump administration, in acquiescence to a federal subpoena issued by Trump's Department of Justice.
Dawn Gabriel and her husband Sam were two of these parents. Their son Oliver, 17, received gender-affirming care at the hospital from ages 14 1/2 to 16, until Mount Sinai abruptly informed the family this winter that it was ending its services for trans kids.
Both Mount Sinai and NYU Langone preemptively halted their transgender youth healthcare programs after the Trump administration proposed new rules that would slash funding to hospitals that provide gender affirming care to young people under 19. It was just the latest blow in a string of policies the administration has rolled out to dehumanize transgender people since Trump took office in 2025.
In February, the family began taking Oliver to a private clinic for his testosterone treatments. But the call from Mount Sinai made them realize their son's sensitive medical records were not safe with his former healthcare provider. While they were told that the medical records would be "anonymized," Dawn and Gabriel said they don't trust the Trump administration won't use the records against their son—or use the dataset as a whole to create anti-trans propaganda.
While Hell Gate has not seen the DOJ's subpoena of Mount Sinai, a similar federal subpoena issued to NYU Langone has reportedly demanded the medical records of patients under 18 who received treatment for gender dysphoria over the past six years, plus personnel records of their medical providers. A group of NYU Langone patients filed a class action lawsuit against the hospital earlier this week to block the share of information, arguing that the DOJ's subpoena is unconstitutional.
On Friday, Mount Sinai spokesperson Lucia Lee told Hell Gate the hospital system has not yet turned over the records. "We are committed to safeguarding our patients' privacy," she said in an email. "Unfortunately, we have been subpoenaed by the federal government to share some of our patients' records. The New York State Shield Law requires that we notify patients when we receive a subpoena like this in the event that the records are ultimately produced. If we are ultimately required to produce records, our current plan is to provide only de-identified information, with all patient-identifying details removed. Because this is an active legal matter, we are unable to comment further at this time."
But Oliver's parents say they don't trust that Mount Sinai has trans kids' best interests in mind, and they don't trust that the Trump administration would responsibly use anonymized data—if it even remains anonymous—given its sustained attacks on trans people. They have vowed to fight the release of their son's private medical information. On Friday afternoon, Dawn Gabriel met with Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal to rally outside Mount Sinai West. Hoylman-Sigal slammed the hospital's handling of the situation, saying it needed to let families know whether it had notified the New York Attorney General's Office, as it is also required to do under the Shield Act, and whether Mount Sinai patients would be protected under the class-action lawsuit filed against NYU Langone. "Do not comply in advance," Hoylman-Sigal warned the hospital. "All of New York is watching."
The incident is also forcing them to reconsider their place in New York City, questioning Mayor Mamdani's pledge to protect transgender children—including $65 million in City funding for gender-affirming care that is now up in the air—and researching the possibility of a move to Canada. While the mayor announced a know-your-rights campaign this Pride Month, Oliver's parents say they need to see much more from him in order to feel safe.
"I love Mamdani, I voted for him in the primary and [the general], and I did a little canvassing for him. But right now, I don't need him to tell me about what protections already exist, because we are not protected, we don't feel protected," Dawn Gabriel said, adding that Pride Month is "a good time for the City to say, 'Hey, Sinai, hey, Langone: Don't fucking do this.'"
Taylor Brown, Director of the Mayor’s Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs responded in an email: "Patients’ private medical records are legally protected and should never be weaponized for political ends. Our administration will continue to explore and use every tool available to protect transgender New Yorkers’ rights, including rights to medical privacy, and safeguard access to gender-affirming care."
In an interview with Hell Gate Friday, Dawn and Sam told us what they need City and state officials to do this Pride to protect their son and other trans kids from federal attacks.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
Hell Gate: Tell me about the lead up to this phone call yesterday.