Christian Monsalve vs. transgender people

Christian Monsalve is an American psychiatrist and anti-transgender activist. Monsalve frequently platforms critics of affirmative models of trans healthcare, particularly those associated with anti-trans hate group Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine.

Background

Christian Stephen “Chris” Monsalve was born in January 1991 and grew up in Bogota, New Jersey. In 2009, Monsalve graduated from sex-segregated Jesuit prep school Regis High School on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Monsalve earned a bachelor’s degree from Fordham University. Monsalve then earned a medical degree from Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in 2021, followed by a residency at UT Southwestern Medical Center, completed in 2025.

In 2025, Monsalve founded private practice Verigrate Health and became a consultant for ABC News’ Medical Unit.

After meeting at a Catholic Faith Fitness Ministry, Monsalve and spouse Julia married in 2023 and have a child.

Anti-trans activism

Monsalve frequently platforms critics of affirmative models of trans healthcare, including:

• Zhenya Abbruzzese
• Alison Clayton
• Moti Gorin
• Anna Hutchinson
• Kristopher Kaliebe
• Stephen Levine
• Kathleen McDeavitt
• Hannah Ryan
• Anastassis Spiliadis
• Florian Zepf
• Ray Zhang

2025 American Psychiatric Association meeting

At the 2025 meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in Los Angeles, Monsalve chaired a panel titled “Comparison of Clinical Guidelines for Pediatric Gender Dysphoria: What Is the Role of Systematic Evidence Reviews?” Presenters were Kristopher Kaliebe, Stephen Levine, and Kathleen McDeavitt. The event had no press access allowed.

2026 IACAPAP World Congress

Monsalve was a member of the International Scientific Advisory Board of the 2026 World Congress of the International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions held in Hamburg, Germany. In that role, Monsalve chaired

The U.S. debate on pediatric gender medicine: Evidence and ethics in the HHS review (link)

• Christian Monsalve (profile) and Evgenia Abbruzzese (profile): Chairs
• Evgenia Abbruzzese (profile): Why is pediatric gender medicine so difficult to robustly debate in the USA?
• Yuan Zhang (profile): Reassessing evidence in pediatric gender medicine: Lessons from the HHS review
• Moti Gorin (profile): Medical ethics and the U.S. Health and Human Services review of pediatric gender dysphoria
• Kathleen McDeavitt (profile): Comparison of guidelines
• Kristopher Kaliebe (profile): Why psychotherapy emerges as alternative for minors with gender dysphoria

Exceptional uncertainty in the field of pediatric gender medicine (link)

• Florian Zepf (profile) and Christian Monsalve (profile): Chairs
• Yuan Zhang (profile): Systematic reviews reveal very uncertain evidence on puberty blockers, hormones, and surgeries
• Alison Clayton (profile): Diagnostic uncertainty in pediatric gender medicine
• Hannah Ryan (profile): Adverse effects and risks of hormonal treatments in paediatric gender medicine
• Anastassis Spiliadis (profile): In support of psychotherapeutic approaches as a first-line treatment for youth gender-related distress
• Anna Hutchinson (profile): Unknown prognosis

References

White, Amy (September 12, 2024). Couple marries after meeting at ministry event. Texas Catholic https://texascatholic.com/couple-marries-after-meeting-at-ministry-event/

Alvarez, Lizette (June 26, 2009). In Uncertain Times, Valedictorians Look Ahead. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/28/nyregion/28valedictorians.html

Selected writing by Monsalve

Zepf, F., Ligges, M., Ligges, C., König, L., Banaschewski, T., Monsalve, C., Kaltiala, R., & Smids, J. (2026). Moving the goal post and using ethics as a rhetorical refuge doesn’t change the evidence: About the debate on the best care for minors with gender issues. BMC Medical Ethics, 27(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12910-026-01631-z

Resources

Verigrate Health (verigrate.com)

LinkedIn (linkedin.com)

• monsalvemd

Psychology Today (psychologytoday.com)

• Dr. Christian Stephen Monsalve
• psychologytoday.com/us/psychiatrists/christian-stephen-monsalve-dallas-tx/1542037

NPPES NPI Registry (npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov)

• Dr. Christian Stephen Monsalve M.D.: NPI #1134707912
• npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/provider-view/1134707912