“Gender Affirming Care” Harms Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria

Solidarity President and Co-Founder, Chris Faddis, spoke with radio show host Dan “Ox” Ochsner on his show Hot Talk with the Ox to discuss the efforts to allow abortion on demand, and how we can resist them. They talked about a petition being pushed in Arizona and the disastrous effects it would have. Listen to the interview below, or read the transcript below that.

Interview Audio – Interview Starts at 1:21

Interview Transcript

Dan “Ox” Ochsner :

Joining us now is a very special guest. We’re going to meet Chris Faddis, if I’m pronouncing your name correctly. Chris,

Chris Faddis (01:21:40):

You did it. You did it correctly.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:21:42):

Well, welcome to Hot Talk with the ox. It’s a pleasure to get you on. And I tell you when I saw your comments about the dangerous effects of gender affirming care and all this, and I thought, how have I not met you yet? So I’m really excited to meet you and get you on the air. Well, your official title, Chris, is that your Solidarity Healthshare president?

Chris Faddis (01:22:13):

Yes, I’m the president of Solidarity Healthshare. Okay, explain it to me. I was at church. Should I call you Dan or call you ox?

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:22:18):

Yeah, it’s interchangeable. My family calls me either or too. So whatever you’re more comfortable with.

Chris Faddis (01:22:26):

That’s awesome. That’s awesome.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:22:27):

So what is Solidarity Healthshare before we get going, please?

Chris Faddis (01:22:32):

Yeah. Solidarity Healthshare is an alternative way to pay for medical bills that our members essentially want to opt out of the crazy bureaucratic woke medicine system and decide to share each other’s bills. It’s made up of mostly Christians and Catholics that come together to share each other’s expenses as opposed to relying on an insurance company to do so. And by doing so, we avoid paying for crazy things like these transgender procedures and therapies, and we pay for all the things that are actually good for people like life affirming fertility treatments. So we’re pretty excited about what we’re able to do, but also very keenly watching what’s happening in what we call “Woke Medicine.”

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:23:12):

To that. Well, let’s talk about a reading from a release. Recent findings from a study done by the American College of Pediatricians reveal the left gender affirming therapies have not been shown to benefit adolescents with gender dysphoria. Do tell.

Chris Faddis (01:23:29):

Yeah. Surprise, surprise. The American College of Pediatricians. And in fact, this study also goes along with a study by the Catholic Medical Association that was done back in September that says that transgender ideology is harming vulnerable patients and both studies are similar. They essentially reviewed the findings of many, many studies, and this one from AC Peds was 60 studies that they reviewed. And in summarizing the findings, they found youth to perceived gender identity is not aligned with their biological sex, have high rates of mental health problems regardless of any affirmation of their gender identities. For one. And that’s just the reality. We’re seeing this across the world. Some of your listeners may know Dan, but about a year and a half ago or so in London where they had been far advanced in gender ideology therapies and all of that, they actually shut down their largest clinic that was doing these gender procedures and therapies. And because they found that people were actually more depressed, there were higher rates of suicide and it was not helping. They also found that these psychologists were leading people to water, so to speak. People were coming in for conditions not related to gender, and they were marching them down that gender field and then leading in towards these therapies.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:24:54):

It’s like a Monty Python routine, like the argument clinic. No, I came here from an argument, if you’re familiar with the sketch, it’s-

Chris Faddis (01:25:01):

Yes, exactly

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:25:02):

Just like,

Chris Faddis (01:25:03):

Yeah, yeah, it’s very strange. So you have people that are looking for help because they’re alone. I’m confused, I’m depressed, I don’t know who I am, which I mean, you and I would just call junior high. Thank you. That’s what life is like as an adolescent instead is just being led down the path. Go ahead.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:25:25):

I need to qualify that junior high or just being in the radio business. It never really goes away. So

Chris Faddis (01:25:32):

You still have it

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:25:33):

Right as a talk show host. Yeah. So

Chris Faddis (01:25:34):

Yeah, it’s very scary. The researchers in this most recent study said that it cast out on claims that social affirmation, like the use of pronouns is a long-term help to these youth. It’s actually not helping them.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:25:52):

So this idea then that we need to parade around all these people that have had these gender, if you will, procedures at a huge cost, which your focus is, is actually hurting them in the long run. We all know that that’s going to be the case, but a ton of people are making a ton of money off of this.

Chris Faddis (01:26:13):

Absolutely. And you’re making a ton of money off of a decision that really you think about the adolescent brain, and this is one of the things that comes out of the study is that they have immature brains and this is not the time to make these kind of lifelong decisions. There was even a study, Dan, that they reviewed that was published to purport that lifetime suicidal ideation was reduced in people who had received puberty blockers. But actually when they dove into the actual research and the actual data, the reality was it actually found that twice as many serious suicidal attempts in participants who had received puberty blockers than those who would just wish they received them. So the reality is that the studies when you really look at ’em are actually showing the opposite of what we’re being told. And it’s actually increasing suicidal ideation.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:27:05):

And without me looking at all the scientific data, it would seem common sense that that would in fact be the case. In other words, like you said, it’s not surprising, it just isn’t. And at some point people are going to catch onto this. So from an insurance standpoint too, I mean, yes, it sounds like you have kind of a moral, obviously a Christian base company, but also the idea would be to help patients not to hurt them.

Chris Faddis (01:27:35):

Right? And for us, that is a real component. I mean, mental health care is a real need. And what other studies, including the one from Catholic Medical Association have found is that when you actually help the person as a person and you affirm not their proposed gender identity, but you affirm their dignity as a person who they were made to be, and you help them come to terms with who God created them as, that they actually then find healing and they do find help. So mental health is a really important component, but it needs to be done without these ideological bents and these kind of directives. Mental health is supposed to help you come to terms with what’s going on in your life, not drive you towards a certain ideology or way of thinking, which is what it’s become. And so we see that as very important.

(01:28:26):

I mean, I think it’s very important to put our arms around these young people especially that are dealing with these gender issues or are struggling with their identity and mental health is very important. It’s a big component of what we do as a healthshare. And one thing to note, you mentioned insurance, Dan, is that we’ve had this looming rule that the Biden administration has been planning to promulgate and it’s a Section 1557 rules, which is the non-discrimination rules under the Affordable Care Act. And we’ve known for some time now that they’re planning to make gender procedures a mandatory requirement of insurance coverage and of medical care and that they’ve held off on publishing the final rule. But what I’ve heard most recently is that’s coming out pretty imminently. Anytime in the next month or two, we should see that rule published and that’s going to effect your insurance. Insurance companies are going to be required to participate in that. Your healthcare providers are going to be required to participate. So this is a real threat. The beauty for us in health sharing is we actually are exempt from that. So hopefully we’ll be able to hold the line much longer and make sure we’re not participating.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:29:32):

Oh yeah. Well this is a done deal, Chris, nationally, but even if it isn’t, it’s a done deal in Minnesota. No question about it. Our government, our governor and legislature would jump on this in a heartbeat and maybe they already have. It’s probably something to watch for, I suppose, in our legislation this year.

Chris Faddis (01:29:52):

Yeah, especially with the abortion bill or bill that that was passed last year for you, while I believe that took away parental consent and some other things. So it’s definitely a big issue to watch out for something that families should be very concerned about and we need to all consider it. When is it time for us to opt out of this medical system and look for alternatives because it’s going woke and they’re trying not to look back, and I think it’s going to take some time for us to fight them off.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:30:20):

Oh man. Okay. And we’ve heard about these healthshare things before, but Chris, I’m glad that you’re citing this study. It’s time people snap out of it. Maybe a final question just between a couple of guys talking. Do you see this as something that in 20 years when the reality of all these efforts come to fruition, when all of these kids that have had transgender surgeries are either dead from suicide or regretting their procedure, does this ebb and flow? Does this go away or is this a way of the future forever now?

Chris Faddis (01:30:53):

 No, I think it does go away. I think we’re already seeing signs of a lot of people that are det transitioning that regret their transition. We’re seeing signs of a lot of even people on the left that are starting to realize this doesn’t make sense. What are we doing? And I think people are starting to wake up now. I think we have a long way to go before we’ve really woken up on it, but I do think in time we will look back and realize that this was, we as a larger society, including those we disagree with, will realize how much of a mistake this was, and I think it’ll go away again. One good example is seeing we’re always behind Europe a little bit on these things and seeing that even in Europe, they’ve started walking back. This big push towards gender affirmation and gender procedures is a good sign that perhaps people will realize this isn’t the best thing for these people, for humanity and for the future.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:31:50):

Chris Faddis, president of Solidarity Healthshare, appreciate the conversation, sir, and I appreciate your standing up to this.

Chris Faddis (01:31:57):

Thanks, Dan. God bless.

Dan “Ox” Ochsner (01:31:58):

God bless you. Thanks for the conversation. Solidarity health share. Chris Faddis on hot talk with the ox. I’m going to take it a step further and say that, yeah, if this does fade away and go away and people realize the error of their ways, anybody who participated in this should go to prison. That’s the opinion of yours truly. Dan “the ox” Oxner on hot talk with you.

Join the Movement

Solidarity HealthShare is a non-profit healthcare sharing ministry rooted in the teachings of the Catholic Church. Established in 2016, we operate on the Catholic principles of solidarity and subsidiarity, in accordance with the Church’s commitment to promoting life-affirming, ethical healthcare.

We strive to provide an ethical, community-driven alternative to traditional health insurance. Through direct Member-to-Member sharing, Members are able to access quality healthcare services while preserving their family’s financial, physical, and spiritual health, all at once. Members never need to worry about their healthcare dollars funding immoral medical procedures. We promote a holistic approach to healthcare, emphasizing the importance of physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.

At the heart of our ministry’s mission to restore and rebuild an authentically Catholic healthcare culture in America is the recognition that every single person has inherent human dignity. We seek to promote healthcare that honors the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death.

To learn more about our community and how to join our fight against abortion on demand, click the banner below!