Dr. Johanna Olson-Kennedy, a prominent physician at the largest youth gender clinic in the U.S., has delayed the publication of a $10 million study on the mental health effects of puberty blockers, fearing that results could be politicized by critics of such treatments. Conducted from 2015 to 2017, the study followed 95 children and reportedly indicated that puberty blockers did not lead to mental health improvements, as the children were already in good mental health at the start. Olson-Kennedy expressed concern that the findings could fuel movements to ban gender-affirming care for minors, contradicting earlier assessments that revealed significant mental health issues among participants before treatment. This situation is particularly contentious given the backdrop of increasing legislative efforts to restrict transgender treatments for minors across the U.S. The study's findings challenge previous research from the Netherlands, which had claimed benefits from puberty blockers, thereby intensifying the debate surrounding youth gender care. Olson-Kennedy's decision to withhold publication has raised questions about the ethics of research funded by taxpayer money.