Adrian Shanker
Role at the time: Former HHS deputy assistant secretary for health policy
Condemned
Statement summary
Shanker contrasts the report's commissioning with research practices during his service at HHS. He argues that the administration selected politically aligned researchers to support a conclusion chosen in advance.
“That's vastly different from how this administration seems to already have the answers for the reports they're publishing before they start. And they're partnering with politically-aligned researchers and think tanks to develop reports that meet a political conclusion rather than a scientific one,”
Open source (opens in a new tab)What's behind HHS claims that gender-affirming care 'may' radicalize - NPRInterviews with Lilliana Mason and Adrian Shanker; updated October 2
NPR examines the report's measurement choices and commissioning process and includes responses from its authors.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Why we used this label
Relative to the HHS report's claim linking gender-affirmation support with authoritarianism and violence, the speaker criticizes its methods, framing or use.