Florida judge halts Biden administration’s gender-identity policy
A federal judge in Tallahassee, Florida, issued a significant ruling on Wednesday, blocking a new Biden administration rule that would impede Florida’s efforts to restrict experimental treatments such as hormone therapy and puberty blockers. Tampa-based U.S. District Judge William Jung granted a preliminary injunction, spanning 50 pages, to halt the enforcement of the rule in Florida. Judge Jung emphasized that Florida has demonstrated an immediate threat, with plaintiffs including the state Agency for Health Care Administration and the state Department of Management Services.
Judge Jung stated, “The plaintiff agencies and the healthcare providers they regulate must either clearly violate Florida law, or clearly violate the new rule.” The rule, which was set to take effect on Friday, aimed to uphold a federal law that prohibits discrimination in health-care programs receiving federal funding. This law prohibits discrimination based on “sex,” extending that protection to encompass discrimination based on gender identity.
Following the finalization of the rule on May 6, the state of Florida filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Simultaneously, a federal judge in Mississippi issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against the rule in a lawsuit filed by multiple states, including Tennessee, Alabama, and Virginia, among others. However, Judge Jung’s decision was specific to Florida.
These legal battles arise as Florida and other Republican-controlled states have made controversial decisions in recent years to restrict treatments for transgender individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria. Florida argued in its lawsuit that the rule in question inappropriately sought to override existing restrictions on these treatments, jeopardizing state and managed-care plan funding.
The U.S. Department of Justice, in a brief filed last month, countered these arguments, asserting that the rule does not dictate a standard of care or mandate specific services. Despite this, Judge Jung noted that the rule would compel the Department of Management Services to revise its policy regarding reimbursement for gender transition treatments, a move that is currently prohibited by the Florida Legislature.
Additionally, Judge Jung referenced previous rulings by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, including a 2022 decision upholding a school board policy in St. Johns County that restricted a female student identifying as male from using boys’ bathrooms. This decision was based on Title IX, a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs, which the new rule interprets in relation to gender identity.
In conclusion, Judge Jung stated, “The final rule is stillborn and a nullity if Title IX does not prohibit discrimination on the basis of ‘gender identity.'” He emphasized that the Eleventh Circuit’s stance on the matter renders the new rule ineffective in that jurisdiction. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody, along with other states, has challenged a separate Biden administration rule on sex-based discrimination in education programs, alleging overreach in extending regulations to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
