Federal judge blocks Indiana gender-affirming health care ban

A federal judge on Friday prevented Indiana’s gender-affirming health care ban from taking effect, granting a temporary reprieve to transgender youths and families seeking care in Indiana.

Indiana’s Senate Bill 480, which would have taken effect July 1, bars health care providers in the state from administering gender-affirming medical care to transgender minors. Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb signed it April 5, one day after he called the legislation “clear as mud” and suggested it was difficult to understand.

Just hours later, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued the state on behalf of four transgender children, their parents and a physician who treats transgender youth, claiming the new law violates the federal requirements of the Medicaid Act and the Affordable Care Act, as well as the U.S. Constitution.

Friday’s preliminary injunction, issued by U.S. District Court Judge James Patrick Hanlon, prevents the state from enforcing most of the ban, excluding its prohibition on gender-affirming surgeries for minors.

“We warned lawmakers that if they passed laws attacking trans people that they would see us in court,” Chase Strangio, deputy director for transgender justice with the ACLU’s LGBTQ & HIV Project, said Friday in a statement. 

“This victory belongs to the families who have bravely participated in this case, as well as other trans youth in Indiana who spoke up about the harms created by this law. Our work in Indiana and around the country is far from over — including with this law,” he said.

Ken Falk, the ACLU of Indiana’s legal director, added that the organization “won’t rest until this unconstitutional law is struck down for good.”

A spokesperson for Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, one of the defendants in the lawsuit, called Friday’s ruling “a disappointment,” in a statement to The Hill, but claimed it wouldn’t be “the end of the story.”

“The Court openly acknowledges evidence showing the safety and effectiveness of puberty blockers and hormone therapy are uncertain and unsettled,” the spokesperson said. “It also recognizes that the State has shown there are good reasons for regulating gender transition procedures for minors.”

“So, our office will continue to defend the democratically passed laws of the Indiana General Assembly, and we will continue to fight for the children,” they added.

During oral arguments on Wednesday, Indiana Solicitor General Thomas Fisher said the potential harms of gender-affirming medical care had not been thoroughly studied.

“We don’t want our children to be part of this grand experiment,” he said.

Gender-affirming health care for both transgender youths and adults is considered medically necessary and often lifesaving by most major medical organizations. The American Medical Association strengthened its position on gender-affirming care this week, passing a resolution to protect access to care.