Fact Check

USAID sent $2M to Guatemala, but not just for gender-affirming health care

Republican officials pointed to the $2 million grant as a waste of federal spending.

by Jack Izzo, Published Feb. 12, 2025


A sign says UNITED STATES AGENCY INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT.

Image courtesy of Getty Images


Claim:
The U.S. government awarded a $2 million grant to fund gender-affirming operations in Guatemala.
Rating:
Mixture

About this rating

What's True

In 2024, USAID awarded a $2 million grant to an LGBTQ+ rights organization in Guatemala called Asociación Lambda. That grant was issued to "strengthen trans-led organizations to deliver gender-affirming health care, advocate for improve quality and access to services, and provide economic empowerment opportunities."

What's False

However, the grant's description says the money went to more than gender-affirming health care. Additionally, gender-affirming health care includes much more than surgeries — it also includes puberty-blocking medication, hormonal therapies, mental health care and speech therapy. Only $350,000 of the allocated $2 million has been given to Asociación Lambda as of this writing.


Before he retook office as U.S. president in January 2025, Donald Trump announced that Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, would lead an initiative called the Department of Government Efficiency that aimed to reduce federal government spending.

One of DOGE's first targets was the U.S. Agency for International Development, which Musk and Trump have attempted to shut down or merge into the State Department — moves constitutional scholars have said the president does not have the authority to make. Republican officials have defended the decision by listing things USAID (and thus taxpayers) supposedly paid for. 

For instance, on Feb. 6, 2025, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a news conference that USAID awarded a $2 million grant for "sex changes in Guatemala." Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn echoed the claim a few days later on X, which Musk owns. South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace repeatedly used a slur for transgender people while sharing the claim during a House committee hearing. Far-right pundits on social media, like Ben Shapiro, also shared the claim.

Additionally, Snopes readers searched the site to see whether the claim was true and emailed us asking about it.

Searching on USASpending.gov, the federal government's website for spending data, revealed that the claim was a mixture of truth and falsehood.

USAID issued a grant in the amount of $2 million, as claimed by Republican officials, in 2024 to an LGBTQ+ rights organization in Guatemala, Asociación Lambda, although only $350,000 had been allocated at the time of this writing. Snopes reached out to Asociación Lambda for comment on this story and will update it we receive more information. 

The description of the grant reads as follows:

ACTIVITY TO STRENGTHEN TRANS-LED ORGANIZATIONS TO DELIVER GENDER-AFFIRMING HEALTH CARE, ADVOCATE FOR IMPROVED QUALITY AND ACCESS TO SERVICES, AND PROVIDE ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT OPPORTUNITIES.

Surgeries do fall under the category of gender-affirming care. However, gender-affirming care is not limited to surgeries, and many other treatments commonly associated with gender-affirming health care also are given to cisgender people. For instance, hormone therapies are commonly prescribed for women in menopause, and puberty blockers can also be used to temporarily delay early-onset puberty in cisgender children. Gender-affirming health care also involves mental health treatment and speech therapy. 

Additionally, the grant money was not being spent solely on gender-affirming care — based on the description, Asociación Lambda also planned to use the money to improve the quality of gender-affirming care and provide the transgender community more economic empowerment, or the ability to equally participate in the economy.


By Jack Izzo

Jack Izzo is a Chicago-based journalist and two-time "Jeopardy!" alumnus.

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