Supreme Court upholds Idaho ban on treatments for transgender minors

The U.S. Supreme Court on April 15, 2024, ruled that Idaho could temporarily ban gender-affirming treatments for transgender minors. [AP Photo]

The U.S. Supreme Court is allowing Idaho to temporarily ban gender-affirming treatments for transgender minors. The court’s move Monday to block the treatments for minors will remain in effect as lawsuits objecting to the ban proceed.

Idaho, now free to enforce its ban on the treatments for minors, can impose felony charges on doctors who ignore the block.

The court’s order applies to  everyone except the two transgendered youth and their parents who are challenging the ban.

Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan opposed banning the treatments.

Justices Neil Gorsuch, Samuel A. Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas, Brett M. Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett supported the ban.

The medical term for the condition receiving gender-affirming care is gender dysphoria. The Mayo Clinic defines gender dysphoria as “the feeling of discomfort or distress that might occur in people whose gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth or sex-related physical characteristics.”