December 4, 2024, Washington, DC: As the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in a lawsuit on transgender health rights, a supporter of transgender rights participates in a rally outside the court. The Supreme Court is
-
-
A federal court ruled that two Texas doctors did not have standing to sue the Biden administration over its transgender discrimination policies.
-
The court said the doctors could not show they were at risk of violating the policy or that the doctors’ conduct was discrimination.
-
The doctors had previously won a judgment in district court. The appeals court vacated that decision and ordered the lower court to dismiss the case.
-
-
A federal court ruled that two Texas doctors did not have standing to sue the Biden administration over its transgender discrimination policies.
-
The court said the doctors could not show they were at risk of violating the policy or that the doctors’ conduct was discrimination.
-
The doctors had previously won a judgment in district court. The appeals court vacated that decision and ordered the lower court to dismiss the case.
Two Texas physicians were found to lack standing to sue the Biden administration over its transgender discrimination rules by a federal appeals court.
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decided that neither the two physicians had broken the administration’s non-discrimination policy nor were they in danger of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services enforcing it.
In 2021, the Biden administration interpreted the Affordable Care Act’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination to cover transgender individuals.
The physicians contended that the policy might force them to administer medical care that they disagree with or that is based on the biological sex of the patient.
“Plaintiffs themselves do not view their conduct as gender-identity discrimination, nor do they offer any evidence that HHS will view it as such,” the judge stated.
The doctors’ “valid, non-discriminatory” justifications, according to the court, included avoiding malpractice or offering services outside of their areas of expertise.
“Plaintiffs have thus failed to show that they are actually violating the Notification, much less that they face a credible threat of enforcement,” the judge stated.
Reversals in protections for transgender people
The Obama administration implemented measures to shield transgender individuals from sex discrimination in medical settings.
The Trump administration reversed the regulations in 2020, establishing gender as a person’s biological sex. The definition of sex provided by the Obama administration was “one’s internal sense of gender, which may be male, female, neither, or a combination of male and female.”
The Biden administration said that the healthcare policy would align with employment sex discrimination regulations that provide safeguards for transgender individuals by reestablishing those rights.
Concerned that they may lose federal Medicare and Medicaid funds if they refused to administer treatments they did not support, the doctors filed a lawsuit when the policies were reintroduced.
HHS contended that since the policy did not mandate that physicians treat patients against medical advice or labor outside of their areas of expertise, the doctors were not at danger.
Two weeks after the Supreme Court heard arguments on whether a Tennessee law prohibiting gender-affirming care for adolescents violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, the decision was made.
-
This article’s information is based on earlier reporting and a decision from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
This article’s information is based on earlier reporting and a decision from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!
