The Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the state of Tennessee over a new law that bans gender-affirming care for transgender minors. The law, which is set to take effect in July, also requires trans youth who are currently receiving gender-affirming care to stop by March 2024. The DOJ claims that the law violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment by only banning these treatments when transgender youth want to access them for gender-affirming care.
Gender-affirming care, including reversible puberty blockers, is considered a life-saving treatment used to delay the permanent effects of puberty so that trans youth, their families, and their doctors can understand their identities better. The DOJ cites the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), the Endocrine Society, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, stating that gender-affirming care is the “widely accepted and endorsed” form of treatment for gender dysphoria in children and teenagers.
The DOJ alleges that the bill wasn’t based on science but instead on the lawmakers’ antipathy towards transgender people. The DOJ quotes several Republicans who supported the bill, stating that procedures banned by the bill would still be allowed for cis and intersex kids. The DOJ concludes that S.B. 1 discriminates, was motivated by an intent to discriminate, and is administered in a discriminatory manner against a group of people defined by sex and transgender status while not achieving any legitimate state goal.
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has stated that the state is committed to protecting children from permanent, life-altering decisions and that this is federal overreach at its worst. The state plans to work with the attorney general to push back in court and stand up for children. Left unchallenged, the law would prohibit transgender children from receiving health care that their medical providers and their parents have determined to be medically necessary. In doing so, the law seeks to substitute the judgment of trained medical professionals and parents with that of elected officials and codifies discrimination against children who already face far too many obstacles.