IACHR calls on States to guarantee the rights of intersex persons in medical settings

October 24, 2025

Washington D.C. - On Intersex Awareness Day, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) calls on the States of the region to guarantee the right to health of intersex persons to be free from discrimination and not to subject them to surgeries or medical treatments without their consent.

Intersex persons are those born with sex characteristics that do not fit typical definitions of male or female bodies, for example, their sexual anatomy, reproductive organs, hormonal or chromosomal patterns. According to a recent UN report, those persons face discrimination when they try to access their human rights, including the right to health, and in medical settings.

Intersex persons face discrimination in healthcare due to prejudice, stigma, and the pathologization of their bodies. Many experience medical violence during childhood through irreversible surgeries or treatments performed without their consent and lacking medical necessity. These interventions can result in chronic pain, trauma, and sterilization. Additionally, health services frequently fail to address intersex-specific needs, while medical personnel may engage in discriminatory or non-consensual practices such as invasive examinations or photography.

Moreover, intersex persons and their families often receive incomplete or biased medical information, limiting informed consent. The denial of access to medical records continues to be a practice carried out under claims of medical secrecy.

The IACHR urges the States of the region to guarantee the human rights of intersex persons in medical settings, primarily their right to personal integrity and freedom from medical violence; their right to health; the right to medical information and guarantees of free, prior, and informed consent; and respect for their dignity and privacy. States must develop care protocols that guarantee adequate and necessary health services to intersex persons without discrimination. Moreover, states must ensure that irreversible surgeries are not carried out during childhood without the intersex person’s consent, and that non-essential treatments are deferred until intersex persons can make a voluntary and informed choice.

Finally, the IACHR calls on States to investigate allegations of human rights violations that happen in medical settings and to provide comprehensive reparations to those subjected to violence, which must guarantee rehabilitation and psychosocial support.

A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for and to defend human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 216/25

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