Latest news with #hormonetherapy
Washington Post
4 hours ago
- General
- Washington Post
U.S. judge halts Trump ban on treatment for 1,000 transgender prisoners
A federal judge on Tuesday barred the Trump administration from withholding hormone treatment from more than 1,000 transgender inmates under an executive order signed by President Donald Trump, after the U.S. Bureau of Prisons acknowledged it had continued providing such treatment to roughly 628 of the inmates. In a 36-page-opinion, U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth of Washington, D.C., granted class-action status to a lawsuit brought on behalf of an estimated 1,028 BOP inmates who are diagnosed with gender dysphoria, distress caused by a mismatch between their assigned gender and gender identity.
Forbes
5 hours ago
- Health
- Forbes
Judge Blocks Trump's Order On Trans Inmates
Federal prisons in the U.S. must provide hormone therapy and social accommodations for hundreds of transgender inmates, a judge ruled Tuesday, blocking an earlier executive order by President Donald Trump—an opponent of gender-affirming care—that prevented federal funds for their treatment. Trump issued an executive order blocking federal funds for 'the purpose of conforming an inmate's ... More appearance to that of the opposite sex.' Judge Royce Lamberth ruled neither the Bureau of Prisons nor Trump's executive order provided 'any serious explanation' as to why hormone therapy and social accommodations, including cosmetics and clothing that match the inmate's gender identity, should not be provided for more than 600 transgender inmates. Inmates who challenged Trump's order successfully argued their treatment is necessary to 'lessen the personal anguish' caused by their gender dysphoria, Lamberth said, noting the Bureau of Prisons did not dispute gender dysphoria could pose severe side effects, including anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts. Shortly after his inauguration, Trump ordered the Bureau of Prisons to revise its medical care policies to be consistent with other federal policies recognizing only two sexes, male and female, by ensuring federal funds aren't used for any medical procedure, treatment or drug 'for the purpose of conforming an inmate's appearance to that of the opposite sex.' Trump's order also asked the Bureau of Prisons to make sure 'males are not detained in women's prisons,' with dozens of transgender women later moved to men's facilities, though Lamberth and other judges have challenged or blocked the transfer of some inmates. The Bureau of Prisons did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 2,198. That's how many transgender inmates are within the federal prison system as of Feb. 20, 2025, according to Bureau of Prisons data obtained by NPR. Trump targeted gender-affirming care and the transgender community early in his second presidency. His executive order, which he argued would defend women from 'gender ideology extremism,' declared the federal government would recognize male and female as the only two sexes. Trump issued another executive order in late January that limited access to gender transition surgeries for people younger than 19, after he said the U.S. would 'rigorously enforce' laws that 'prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures.' Trump's push against gender-affirming care follows a yearslong effort by dozens of states to bar or limit access. The U.S. military has asked transgender service members to voluntarily leave active-duty service by June 6, according to guidance issued by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. About 1,000 service members have disclosed being diagnosed with gender dysphoria and have agreed to leave, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement, though just over 4,000 transgender people serve in the military. Hegeth's guidance follows an earlier ruling by the Supreme Court, which said Trump could implement a ban on transgender people serving in the military.
CBS News
5 hours ago
- Health
- CBS News
Judge says Trump administration must provide hormone therapy, accommodations to transgender inmates
Washington — A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ruled Tuesday that the federal Bureau of Prisons must continue providing hormone therapy and social accommodations to transgender inmates while they pursue a legal challenge to President Trump's executive order that sought to restrict access to the treatments. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth granted a request for a preliminary injunction sought by three transgender inmates who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and were provided with hormone therapy and certain lifestyle accommodations, such as clothing and hair removal devices, during their incarceration. The inmates filed their lawsuit after Mr. Trump issued an executive order on his first day back in the White House that kept federal funds from being spent on any medical procedure or treatment meant to confirm an inmate's appearance to that of the opposite sex. They asked the district court in Washington to block implementation of Mr. Trump's executive order while their lawsuit proceeds, arguing that the directive and the Bureau of Prison's actions implementing it violated a federal law that governs the agency rulemaking process, the Administrative Procedure Act. Lamberth agreed, and ruled that the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits of their claims under the Administrative Procedure Act. The judge blocked administration officials from enforcing the president's executive order as it relates to hormone therapy and social accommodations for people in custody of the Bureau of Prisons and directed them to continue providing transgender inmates with gender-affirming care and certain accommodations, as was the bureau's policy before Mr. Trump took office. "The import of the opinion is essentially this: Under the APA, the BOP may not arbitrarily deprive inmates of medications or other lifestyle accommodations that its own medical staff have deemed to be medically appropriate without considering the implications of that decision," Lamberth, appointed by President Ronald Reagan, wrote in a 36-page opinion. The case before Lamberth is one of several brought by transgender inmates in response to Mr. Trump's executive actions. In the wake of the president's order regarding gender-affirming care for inmates, the Bureau of Prisons issued memoranda that barred federal dollars from being used to "purchase any items that align with transgender ideology" or provide gender-affirming care for transgender inmates. The bureau also clarified that requests for clothing accommodations will be denied. The three plaintiffs in the case were in custody of the Bureau of Prisons when the directives were issued and filed their lawsuit in March. They had been prescribed hormone therapy and were approved to receive social accommodations, including undergarments and hygiene products. But on the heels of Mr. Trump's executive order, they were informed their treatments would be discontinued, though their access to the medical care has since been restored. The transgender inmates asked the court to issue relief in mid-March and sought to certify a class consisting of all incarcerated people in the Bureau of Prisons' custody who will be or have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria and receive the gender-affirming care targeted by Mr. Trump's executive order. Lamberth rejected the Trump administration's contention that it will suffer a financial burden if required to continue providing certain gender-affirming care to inmates. He noted that the Bureau of Prisons is providing hormone therapy to 600 incarcerated people who have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria. "The only deleterious public effect of the court's injunction will be to require that, during the pendency of litigation, the BOP will continue to shoulder a certain administrative cost that it has already willingly assumed since the commencement of this action, and that it had voluntary borne for many years prior," he wrote. The judge also said that neither the Bureau of Prisons nor Mr. Trump's executive order provided a "serious explanation" as to why medical treatment for gender dysphoria should be handled differently than other mental health interventions. "Nothing in the thin record before the court suggests that either the BOP or the president consciously took stock of — much less studied — the potentially debilitating effects that the new policies could have on transgender inmates before the implementing memoranda came into force," Lamberth found. The Justice Department is likely to appeal the decision. It is the latest in a slew of rulings from trial court judges that have blocked many aspects of Mr. Trump's second-term agenda.
The Independent
6 hours ago
- Health
- The Independent
Judge rules federal prisons must continue providing hormone therapy to transgender inmates
The federal Bureau of Prisons must continue providing hormone therapy and social accommodations to hundreds of transgender inmates following an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that led to a disruption in medical treatment, a federal judge ruled Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth said a federal law prohibits prison officials from arbitrarily depriving inmates of medications and other lifestyle accommodations that its own medical staff has deemed to be appropriate. The judge said the transgender inmates who sued to block Trump's executive order are trying to lessen the personal anguish caused by their gender dysphoria, which is the distress that a person feels because their assigned gender and gender identity don't match. 'In light of the plaintiffs' largely personal motives for undergoing gender-affirming care, neither the BOP nor the Executive Order provides any serious explanation as to why the treatment modalities covered by the Executive Order or implementing memoranda should be handled differently than any other mental health intervention,' he wrote. The Bureau of Prisons is providing hormone therapy to more than 600 inmates diagnosed with gender dysphoria. The bureau doesn't dispute that gender dysphoria can cause severe side effects, including depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts, the judge said. The Republican president's executive order required the bureau to revise its medical care policies so that federal funds aren't spent 'for the purpose of conforming an inmate's appearance to that of the opposite sex.' Lamberth's ruling isn't limited to the plaintiffs named in the lawsuit. He agreed to certify a class of plaintiffs consisting of anyone who is or will be incarcerated in federal prisons. Trump's order also directed the federal Bureau of Prisons to ensure that 'males are not detained in women's prisons.' In February, however, Lamberth agreed to temporarily block prison officials from transferring three incarcerated transgender women to men's facilities and terminating their access to hormone therapy. American Civil Liberties Union. Ronald Reagan in 1987.
CNN
6 hours ago
- Health
- CNN
Judge blocks Trump from cutting off gender-affirming care for federal inmates
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Trump administration to continue providing gender-affirming medication for transgender inmates in federal prisons, dealing the latest blow to a multi-pronged effort by the president to pull back federal support for transgender health care. 'All parties seem to agree that the named plaintiffs do, in fact, need hormone therapy,' US District Judge Royce Lamberth wrote. The preliminary injunction from Lamberth means that officials within the Bureau of Prisons cannot enforce guidance the agency's leadership issued earlier this year implementing President Donald Trump's order, which directed the agency to revise its policies to 'ensure that no Federal funds are expended for any medical procedure, treatment, or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate's appearance to that of the opposite sex.' Lamberth, an appointee of former President Ronald Reagan, said a group of transgender inmates who had been medically diagnosed with gender dysphoria and who challenged BOP's guidance implementing the president's order were likely to succeed on their claim that the agency violated federal rulemaking procedures. They will continue to receive drugs as prescribed, the judge said. 'Nothing in the thin record before the Court suggests that either the BOP or the President consciously took stock of—much less studied—the potentially debilitating effects that the new policies could have on transgender inmates before the implementing memoranda came into force,' Lamberth wrote in the 36-page ruling. 'The BOP may not arbitrarily deprive inmates of medications or other lifestyle accommodations that its own medical staff have deemed to be medically appropriate without considering he implications of that decision.' Though the case was originally brought by three transgender inmates, Lamberth agreed to certify a class that consists of all federal inmates who are currently taking hormone therapy medication to treat their diagnosis of gender dysphoria, defined as the psychological distress an individual feels when their gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth. Not every transgender individual has gender dysphoria. There are currently about 1,000 people in federal custody who are diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Lamberth noted that the BOP was continuing to give more than 600 inmates their prescribed hormone therapy medications, despite Trump's prior order. The Justice Department had tried to explain how the BOP was acting differently than the order said they should, Lamberth noted. A federal government lawyer at a recent hearing 'argued that the BOP's policy is to provide hormone therapy to inmates as necessary to address medical needs other than 'conforming an inmate's appearance to that of the opposite sex,' such as to ameliorate anxiety, depression, or suicidality associated with gender dysphoria. Therefore, they argue, the BOP has the authority to provide not just some relief, but the very relief that the plaintiffs sought in their Complaint—to wit, restoration of their hormone therapy.' The case so far has highlighted the changing reality transgender inmates in federal prisons have faced since Trump took office in January. Three different inmates — Alishea Kingdom, Solo Nichols and Jas Kapule — sued because they had been receiving hormone therapy where they were held and also had gained access to some supplies, such as underwear and cosmetics, that would enable them to accommodate their genders. Kingdom is a transgender woman and was able to access feminine underwear and commissary items in addition to her hormone therapy medication, while Nichols and Kapule were able to have men's boxers and chest binders. The BOP stopped Kingdom's hormone therapy in February, causing her anxiety, hopelessness, panic attacks and suicidal thoughts, she told the court. But once she and the others filed the lawsuit, her hormone therapy was restored, Lamberth noted. Nichols similarly had his testosterone injections reduced in February, until the BOP reversed course and restored the full dosage by the end of that month, court filings say. Kapule never lost access to hormone therapy, according to the court records. The judge in the case decided the three inmates would suffer irreparable harm if he didn't step in with this ruling, according to his opinion. CNN has reached out to BOP for comment on the ruling.
