Two doctors from North Texas have been implicated in a healthcare fraud case concerning their alleged provision of gender-affirming care to minors. Attorney General Ken Paxton has accused Dr. May Lau and Dr. Brett Cooper of falsifying medical records by altering the sex listed for patients, employing incorrect diagnosis codes, and concealing that prescribed medications were being administered for gender-affirming purposes. These actions are claimed to be in violation of the state’s Healthcare Program Fraud Prevention Act.
In 2024, Paxton initiated legal action against both doctors, alleging that they prescribed hormonal treatments to numerous minors, breaching the restrictions set forth by Senate Bill 14 enacted in 2023.
In the latest court filings, Paxton claims that Lau and Cooper have committed Medicaid fraud by manipulating patient records and billing for services not rendered in accordance with state laws. “What these radicals were doing was evil, and I will pursue every available legal tool to stop and punish this cruel child abuse,” Paxton stated. “Any fraudulent scheme to steal hardworking Texans’ taxpayer dollars will be stopped and repaid in full. Under my watch, the transgender activists using their positions in the medical field to illegally ‘transition’ children will face the full force of the law.”
The backdrop to this issue lies in the Texas Legislature’s decision in 2023 to prohibit transgender minors from accessing puberty blockers and hormone therapy, treatments endorsed by numerous medical organizations. The law mandates that children already undergoing these treatments must be gradually discontinued in a medically appropriate manner. Additionally, it bans transition-related surgeries for minors, a procedure that is seldom performed on young individuals. Texas boasts one of the largest transgender communities in the United States.
In October 2024, Paxton filed a lawsuit against Lau, alleging that the pediatrician from UT Southwestern had prescribed hormones to at least 21 patients aged between 14 and 17. Court documents further claimed that Lau implanted a puberty-blocking device in a 15-year-old and incorrectly billed the patient’s insurance for an endocrine disorder rather than gender dysphoria. Lau voluntarily relinquished her medical license earlier this year, stating her intention to relocate her practice to Oregon.
Cooper faced legal action a month later for prescribing testosterone to 15 minors aged 15 to 17. The trial for this case is set to commence in May.
Additionally, a third physician, El Paso endocrinologist Hector Granados, was also sued by Paxton; however, that lawsuit was dropped in September after it was determined that Granados had ceased providing gender-affirming care to minors prior to the law’s enactment.
The recent court filings seek to recover triple the amount of Medicaid funds disbursed in damages. Senate Bill 14 stipulates that those found in violation of the law risk having their medical licenses revoked by the state.
