Doctors resigning over BMA’s ‘outrageous’ opposition to Cass Review

Doctors are resigning from the British Medical Association (BMA) after it voted to oppose the landmark Cass Review.

According to The Times, over 1,400 doctors, including 900 BMA members, have signed an open letter criticising the doctors’ union for “going against the principles of evidence-based medicine and against ethical practice”.

The BMA is due to review Dr Hilary Cass’s authoritative report, after its council restated its opposition to the puberty blockers ban and accused politicians of an increasing “transphobia which is ostracising transgender people”.

‘No respect’

Dozens of signatories said that they were resigning or rethinking their BMA membership.

One commenter said: “On the basis of the BMA’s outrageous stance on the superbly researched and written Cass Report, which has my full support and endorsement, I have decided to leave the BMA having been a member for 50 years since I qualified as a doctor.

“Increasingly, they not only fail to represent my views, they display no respect for the very premise and ethos inherent in being a medical professional.”

“They have no evidence for their opposition.”Jacky Davis, BMA Council member

Another added: “As a union, primarily, it is the role of the BMA to represent its members, and not to drive clinical opinion, especially in specialist areas. I am considering resigning after membership of 42 years.”

‘Anti-Cass agenda’

Consultant radiologist Jacky Davis, who is a member of the BMA council, said the motion opposing the Cass Review should have been raised at the union’s annual representative meeting instead of being actioned by the council.

She stated: “The BMA council contains a vocal minority who have an anti-Cass agenda. They are driving policy in a direction that the membership have not been consulted on and do not agree with.

“This minority has voted to block the implementation of Cass, an evidence-based review which took four years to put together. They have no evidence for their opposition.”

Children

When the BMA announced its position, the NHS said it had “full confidence” in the Cass Review, and the Department of Health said the recommendations are “firmly grounded in evidence”.

A Health Department spokesperson stated: “NHS England will be implementing Dr Cass’s recommendations so that children and young people get the safe, holistic care and support they need. We do not support a delay to vital improvements from the NHS to gender services.”

In April, Dr Hilary Cass’s review of child gender services in England concluded that giving trans drugs to children is based on “remarkably weak evidence”.

She urged the NHS to review its use of cross-sex hormones and ensure that gender-confused children receive a holistic assessment of all their needs. But the report left open the possibility of drugs for whom it is “clinically indicated”.