The BMA votes to take a ‘neutral position’ in its evaluation of the Cass Review

The British Medical Association (BMA) has announced that it will adopt a “neutral position” while undertaking its evidence-led evaluation of the controversial Cass Review, according to a report by The New Statesman.

The move comes after the BMA previously called for a pause on the implementation of the report’s recommendations regarding the provision of gender-affirming care for children and young people and requested that the halt on the prescription of puberty blockers for under-18s be lifted.

In a statement, the BMA Chair of Council, Professor Phil Anfield, said: “The BMA is not aiming to replicate the Cass Review. The Chair of our task and finish group has set out to Council how we will listen to those with lived experience either as patients or as clinicians, consider the link between evidence and recommendation, and compare the recommendations with the actions or strategies that have arisen from them.”

“I am clear that we will hear different perspectives, always prioritising the needs of transgender children and young people” – Dr Phil Anfield, BMA

He added: “While considerable focus has been placed on access to puberty blockers, the Cass Review also included wide-ranging recommendations around care for children and young people with gender dysphoria.

“According to the founding principles of the BMA, our evaluation will be evidence-led, starting from a position of neutrality. I cannot predict the outcome of our evaluation. However, I am clear that we will hear different perspectives, always prioritising the needs of transgender children and young people, who deserve the very best care.”

Carried out by Dr. Hillary Cass, a former president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, the Cass Review was commissioned by NHS England following a rise in the number of children and young people seeking out gender-affirming care.

The report set out to examine the current landscape of gender-affirming care for children in England and laid out 32 recommendations about the provision of care for transgender young people and those experiencing gender dysphoria.

While the report was widely accepted by those in the UK medical community, the BMA said it was concerned about how the review may impact transgender healthcare, highlighting its “unsubstantiated recommendations”.

Their concerns were echoed by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and UK advocacy group TransActual, who called the review “fundamentally flawed.”

Following its publication, the BMA said it would “publicly critique” the review.

“I do not know, nor do I pre-empt, what we will conclude” – Dr David Strain, BMA

However, the organisation’s stance was criticised in an open letter shared with The New Statesman in August, suggesting that the decision did “not reflect the views of the wider membership, whose opinion you did not seek”.

As Anfield’s statement said, the shift in position regarding the Cass Review does not mean that the BMA will not be carrying out their own evaluation.

Instead, Dr David Strain, the chair of the BMA’s board of science who is leading the evaluation, told The New Statesman that he had “every intention to lead our evaluation from a position of neutrality.”

“The first phase of my review will be to listen to people with lived experience and a range of healthcare professionals working in this area,” he said. “I do not know, nor do I pre-empt, what we will conclude.”

The BMA is expected to complete its evaluation into the Cass Review by the end of the year.