Premier's announcement on transgender policies surprised Alberta Health Services advisory group

Members of the body that advises Alberta Health Services about 2SLGBTQ+ health care were surprised by Premier Danielle Smith's proposed transgender policies announcement earlier this year, according to internal records obtained by CBC News.

In a video posted to social media on Jan. 31, Smith laid out a host of proposed policies focused on transgender youth, including several regarding gender-affirming care. She formally announced the policies at a news conference the following day.

Records obtained by CBC News through a freedom of information request highlight concerns raised by members of the AHS Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) provincial advisory council in the days after the premier announced the proposed policies.

"This announcement is politically motivated and not based in fact or clinical guidelines," one council member wrote in a Feb. 2 email to two named AHS officials and other recipients whose email addresses were redacted. The sender's identity was also protected under privacy legislation.

"I believe we have an obligation to inform (as per our mandate) those in our sphere of influence, which includes the public, and leaders within the organization with the right information," the email said, adding that the council also needed to convey "the damage this policy does to the health of 2SLGBTQ Albertans especially those kids."

The SOGIE council acts as a liaison between AHS and 2SLGBTQ+ patients, their families and care providers. It does not report to the provincial government.

Among other things, the government's proposed policies would ban top and bottom surgeries for anyone under 18 (Doctors say bottom surgeries aren't performed on youth and top surgeries are rare.)

Puberty blockers and hormone therapies would not be permitted for those under 16, unless someone has already started treatment.

Teens aged 16 or 17 could start hormone therapies if they are deemed mature enough and have parental, physician and psychologist approval.

The government is providing additional support to help transgender adults access health care, including trying to attract specialists in transgender care to Alberta, Sam Blackett, press secretary for the premier's office, said in a statement.

The province is also creating a private registry of specialists to make it easier for gender-diverse Albertans to access health care, and developing a pilot project that will see counsellors help transgender youth and their families, Blackett said.

The policies are designed to "preserve the choices children and youth have before potentially making life-altering and often irreversible adult decisions," he said, echoing words Smith has used.

Blackett did not answer whether the government notified AHS before announcing the potential policy changes. AHS did not confirm if it had been notified in advance of Smith's announcement.

However, records show that less than two hours after Smith's Jan. 31 video was posted online, an AHS senior communications official flagged it in an email to leadership, including president and CEO Athana Mentzelopoulos.