As the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) reveals Australia’s blind spots on puberty blockers for gender-distressed minors, Women Speak Tasmania is renewing our urgent call for action. Our February 26 media release demands that Tasmania’s Health Minister Bridget Archer and Attorney-General Guy Barnett immediately review the clinical, regulatory, and legal frameworks governing these off-label treatments. With no national data on usage or long-term safety, waiting for federal guidance is no longer an option—children’s wellbeing demands precautionary steps now.
The TGA’s Alarming Findings: Flying Blind on Children’s Health
A report in The Australian on February 23, 2026, exposed the TGA’s safety assessment of puberty blockers (GnRH analogues like Leuprorelin Acetate) for gender dysphoria. These drugs—approved for conditions like precocious puberty or cancer—are used “off-label” for minors questioning their gender, without TGA evaluation for efficacy or safety in this context.
Key revelations:
- No National Data: Australia lacks prescribing records for this use, making it impossible to calculate adverse event rates or assess risk-benefit profiles.
- Known Risks: Product warnings already highlight bone density loss, psychiatric symptoms (e.g., anger, aggression, depression), fertility impacts, and more—yet informed consent is the only safeguard emphasized.
- Off-Label Concerns: The TGA can’t suspend this use since it’s unapproved, relying on voluntary adverse event reports (only 65 in under-18s since 1998, none tied to gender dysphoria).
This echoes international shifts: the UK’s indefinite ban post-Cass Review (2024), and Queensland’s pause on new prescriptions. Yet Federal Health Minister Mark Butler, in November 2025 comments to The Australian, deferred any pause to states, calling it a “state matter” while awaiting NHMRC guidelines mid-2026. Critics, including Senator Claire Chandler and Women’s Forum Australia, slammed this as a “cop-out,” urging federal action under the Therapeutic Goods Act.
Tasmania’s Response: Promises Unmet, Risks Unaddressed
In March 2025, we met with then-Health Minister Jacquie Petrusma, followed by a letter seeking clarity on the Tasmanian Gender Service (TGS). Her May 29 response assured:
- Multidisciplinary teams (psychologists, psychiatrists, paediatricians) guide decisions.
- Consent documents are under review and may be accessible via Right to Information (RTI).
- Treatments follow “current clinical and legal frameworks.”
- Tasmania would monitor the federal NHMRC review.
Yet, RTI request for consent procedures lodge in September 2025 remains unanswered, breaching statutory timelines. Without public access to these documents, how can parents truly consent? Leuprorelin Acetate—banned for new use in Queensland—continues in Tasmania, raising governance questions.
The TGA’s findings amplify our concerns: Without data, how can TGS ensure safety? The Cass Review rated the RCH Melbourne guidelines (underpinning TGS) at just 19/100 for rigour—yet Tasmania clings to them.
Urgent Action Needed: Recommendations for Ministers Archer and Barnett
Tasmania can’t wait for mid-2026 federal advice. We call on Health Minister Bridget Archer and Attorney-General Guy Barnett to:
- Publish Consent Materials: Immediately release TGS informed consent documents for minors, ensuring full risk disclosure aligns with off-label status.
- Conduct an Independent Review: Launch a clinical governance audit of TGS, evaluating Cass Review implications and adopting precautionary guidelines like those from the National Association of Practising Psychiatrists.
- Assess Legal Liabilities: Jointly examine state duty of care, potential clinician/government exposure, and safeguards against experimental treatments.
- Prioritize Evidence-Based Care: Confirm no new puberty blocker prescriptions until robust data emerges, focusing on psychological support for gender-distressed youth.
These steps aren’t ideological—they’re about transparency, safeguarding, and evidence. As Dr. Caballero noted in our release:
“These are not minor clinical questions—they are governance and safeguarding questions.”
Federal deferral to states hands responsibility to you, Ministers. Tasmania’s children deserve better than “flying blind.” Act now to protect them.