Federal judge temporarily blocks state law banning gender transition care

A federal judge has temporarily blocked an Indiana law that would have prevented doctors from providing gender transition care to minors.

The law was set to take effect July 1, but on Friday U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Indiana James Patrick Hanlon issued a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit brought by four transgender youth, their parents and a medical provider who said it violated the U.S. Constitution.

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“Today’s victory is a testament to the trans youth of Indiana, their families, and their allies, who never gave up the fight to protect access to gender-affirming care and who will continue to defend the right of all trans people to be their authentic selves, free from discrimination,” Ken Falk of the ACLU of Indiana, which represents the plaintiffs, said in a prepared statement.

A spokesperson from Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office, which is leading the state's defense, said in a statement the decision was a "disappointment" but "not the end of the story."

Hanlon's decision recognizes the unsettled questions around the safety and efficacy of puberty blockers and hormone therapy, the spokesperson said, and how that gives the state reason to regulate these procedures for minors. "Our office will continue to defend the democratically passed laws of the Indiana General Assembly, and we will continue to fight for the children," the spokesperson continued.

The ban targeted cross-sex hormone therapy, puberty-blocking drugs and gender reassignment surgery, according to Hanlon's order. The judge specified that under the injunction the state can't prohibit “gender transition procedures for minors except gender reassignment surgery and ... speech that would aid or abet gender transition procedures for minors" while the lawsuit continues to move through the court.

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The minors’ request that a judge freeze the ban on gender reassignment surgeries was denied, however, as Hanlon said they “lack standing to challenge that ban because gender reassignment surgeries are not provided to minors in Indiana.”

If the law were to take effect, physicians who provide these procedures could face discipline by the state’s medical licensing board.

In their original complaint, which was filed in early April just hours after the law was signed by Gov. Eric Holcomb, the plaintiffs say the care at the heart of the ban is “evidence-based and medically necessary” as it treats minors suffering from gender dysphoria, a widely-recognized condition that can cause serious mental health challenges.

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“By denying this medically necessary treatment to minors, the State of Indiana has displaced the judgment of parents, doctors, and adolescents with that of the government,” the lawsuit states. “In so doing, the state has intruded on the fundamental rights of parents to care for their minor children by consenting to their receipt of doctor-recommended and necessary care and treatment.”

The state argued in its response to the preliminary injunction request that these procedures pose a risk of leaving youth with “irreversible negative medical consequences.”

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“The question here is not whether parents have a right to choose among otherwise lawful treatment options but whether they have a right to override legislative judgments that the specific gender transition procedures sought are too risky, unproven, and invasive to be offered to any minor,” the response reads.

In his decision Hanlon noted that the state has a strong interest in enforcing the laws enacted by democratically-elected officials, but plaintiffs have shown “some likelihood of success” on the claim that their rights – specifically, equal protection rights under the 14th Amendment and freedom of speech rights under the First Amendment - would be infringed upon by the law.

Contact the reporter at 317-273-3188.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Federal judge blocks state law banning gender transition care