Washington State University (WSU) suspended a continuing medical education course on youth “gender medicine” after LGBTQ activists lodged complaints and triggered an inquiry by the accrediting body.
WSU approved the course materials in June after a nine-month review process that found them compliant with accreditation standards, according to SEGM.
The course, created by the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine (SEGM), provides “guidance on the benefits, risks, and ethical considerations of medical interventions for gender-dysphoric youth.” It draws from SEGM’s 2023 international conference and includes topics such as “transgender identities and the brain,” “misconceptions in youth gender medicine,” and the global debate over hormone treatments for gender-dysphoric minors.
Controversy began on October 29 when “transgender” activist Erin Reed highlighted the course online, according to Fox News. The following week, 31 activist groups demanded that WSU revoke SEGM’s accreditation. The Southern Poverty Law Center previously labeled SEGM an “anti-LGBTQ hate group,” a claim the organization rejects as politically motivated.
After Reed’s post, the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) opened an inquiry into the program. On the same day, WSU suspended credit for SEGM’s course and confirmed that ACCME had requested an explanation by November 16 detailing how the university approved the videos.
“I am very sorry about this situation — I’ve never seen anything like this from a national accrediting body,” a university continuing medical education director told SEGM.
Reed celebrated the decision, writing on Bluesky, “I’m pleased to announce that following our reporting, multiple people have reported that a formal inquiry is being made into SEGM’s accreditation, and that the CME courses are at least temporarily pulled down.”
SEGM responded that the speed of the inquiry appeared politically driven.
“The timing was striking: it occurred almost immediately after an activist published a blog post criticizing the course,” a spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “That simply isn’t enough time to have meaningfully reviewed several hours of educational content for factual accuracy or compliance.”
WSU spokesperson Pam Scott said the university “remains committed to providing high-quality, evidence-based Continuing Medical Education courses.”
The dispute follows recent research from SEGM and McMaster University finding “low or very low” evidence that puberty blockers and hormone therapy improve well-being in gender-dysphoric youth.
The videos remain available to the public, but healthcare professionals cannot currently earn CME credit while the investigation is underway.