Court rejects Texas lawsuit trying to end anti-discrimination protections for transgender patients

A federal appeals court ruled that a Biden Administration rule banning healthcare discrimination against transgender people can stay in place over the objection of two Texas doctors, Reuters reports.

New Orleans’ 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday rejected the idea that the doctors had legal standing to bring the case, pointing out that they had neither violated the White House policy nor enforcement threats, according to Reuters.

The unanimous opinion by the three-judge panel overturns a 2022 decision in favor of the doctors by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Amarillo.

Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, is the same judge who made headlines last year for siding with anti-abortion groups seeking to take commonly used abortion drug mifepristone off the market. The Supreme Court ultimately reversed that decision. 

The Texas physicians in the 5th Circuit case filed their suit in 2021 after the Biden administration announced that the Affordable Care Act prevents providers who get federal funding from discriminating against people seeking gender-affirming care.

The physicians, Susan Neese and James Hurly, argued that the law went too far and could cut off Medicare and Medicaid funding for providers if they decline to offer treatments they can’t medically justify or support, Reuters reports.

However, the appeals court ruled that the pair failed to show that they were in actual danger of being penalized for violating the ACA’s anti-discrimination statutes, according to Reuters.

Republican President-elect Donald Trump could order HHS to roll back the Biden White House’s anti-discrimination rule. During his first term in office, Trump removed all healthcare discrimination protections put in place under the administration of President Barack Obama, Reuters also reports.

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This article appears in Dec 11-17, 2024.