WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order aimed at cutting federal support for gender transitions for people under age 19, his latest move to roll back protections for transgender people across the country.

“It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called ‘transition’ of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures,” the order says.

The order directs that federally-run insurance programs, including TRICARE for military families and Medicaid, exclude coverage for such care and calls on the Department of Justice to vigorously pursue litigation and legislation to oppose the practice.

Medicaid programs in some states cover gender-affirming care. The new order suggests that the practice could end, and targets hospitals and universities that receive federal money and provide the care.

The language in the executive order — using words such as “maiming,” “sterilizing” and “mutilation” — contradicts what is typical for gender-affirming care in the United States. It also labels guidance from the World Professional Association for Transgender Health as “junk science.” Major medical groups such as the American Medical Association support access to care.

“Parents and families should be free to make medical decisions informed by their doctors and the available science without the interference of politics,” an American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson said.

Young people who persistently identify as a gender that differs from their sex assigned at birth are first evaluated by a team of professionals. Some young people may try a social transition, involving changing a hairstyle or pronouns. Some may later also receive puberty blockers or hormones. Surgery is extremely rare for minors.

“This executive order is a brazen attempt to put politicians in between people and their doctors, preventing them from accessing evidence-based health care supported by every major medical association in the country,” Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. “It is deeply unfair to play politics with people’s lives and strip transgender young people, their families and their providers of the freedom to make necessary health care decisions.”

Trump’s order is likely to be challenged in court, as many of his policies have been.

The order has families of transgender young people wondering what comes next.

“Our biggest fear is for our daughter. Will she be able to get the care that she needs,” said Melissa Baern, a Massachusetts mother of a transgender 18-year-old daughter who is on hormone therapy. “And if she doesn’t get the care she needs, what does that mean for her? What does that mean for her mental health?