(September 14, 2023 – Lincoln, Nebraska) Thomas More Society attorneys, along with the Center for American Liberty and Nebraska malpractice attorney Jeff Downing, filed on September 13 a medical malpractice lawsuit on behalf of Luka Hein, against physicians at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

On July 26, 2018, the Lincoln, Nebraska, hospital and its named doctors performed a double mastectomy on Hein—then only 16 years old—after only two doctor appointments. This was labelled by these medical professionals as the first step in her “gender affirming care” process.

Throughout her teen years, Hein had endured mental health complications such as anxiety, depression, and gender dysphoria as a result of various traumatic events. The doctors at the University of Nebraska Medical Center fast-tracked her for a double mastectomy—at the age of 16—before exploring more extensive mental health treatment options or other non-surgical interventions.

“Even the most militant transgender activists who are pushing this radical agenda on children, do not presume to go so far as to rush minors into surgery as their first treatment option,” stated Charles LiMandri, Partner with LiMandri & Jonna and Special Counsel for the Thomas More Society. “In pursuing this legal action against these reckless defendants, Luka Hein is a courageous young woman who is seeking to help other vulnerable minors avoid suffering a similar terrible fate.”

In Hein’s first medical visit to the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Dr. Perry Johnson—a named defendant in the lawsuit—stated: “Typically, we would wait until the patient is a little bit older, but this would be influenced by the potential negative impact psychologically on the patient by prolonging the transition.”

Prior to Johnson’s declaration, Hein had no negative psychological reported on her medical records that could have indicated a “potential negative impact” if surgery were delayed until she was older. Hein was then prescribed testosterone over an extensive course of four years—a medical intervention that has left her with ongoing health complications.

“I was going through the darkest and most chaotic time in my life, and instead of being given the help I needed, these doctors affirmed that chaos into reality,” said Hein. “I was talked into medical intervention that I could not fully understand the long-term impacts and consequences of.”

“UNMC doctors manipulated Luka and her parents into believing surgery was the only solution to her complicated mental health, implying that Luka would take her own life if her breasts weren't removed,” explained Harmeet Dhillon, CEO of the Center for American Liberty. “Under the law, consent to a medical procedure must be both fully informed and freely given. In Luka’s case, it was neither. This unethical manipulation makes Luka’s parents victims of a dishonest process, every bit as much as Luka.”

“I don’t think most Nebraskans have any idea what the Med Center is doing to gender confused kids under the banner of our great university,” added Downing. “UNMC let Luka down by rushing her to double mastectomy when she was just 16.”

Hein is seeking damages based on evidence of negligence and lack of informed consent.

Read the Complaint for Medical Malpractice, Waiver of Panel Review, and Demand for Jury Trial, filed September 13, 2023, in the District Court of Douglas County, Nebraska, by attorneys from the Thomas More Society, the Center for American Liberty, and attorney Jeff Downing, in Luka Hein v. UNMC Physicians, The Nebraska Medical Center, Nebraska Medicine, Nahia J. Amoura, M.D., Perry Johnson, M.D., Stephan Barrientos, M.D. and Megan Smith-Sallans, here.

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