Supreme Court Case: U.S. v. Skrmetti
A battle over healthcare for transgender youth
WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Gender-affirming healthcare for transgender children has become a polarizing subject.
On Wednesday, Tennessee’s Attorney General is taking the fight to stop this form of healthcare to the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court justices will determine whether Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for youth violates the 14th Amendment. The Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment bars discrimination based on sex.
“There is precedent, that a law that discriminates against transgender people is a form of sex discrimination that should get more scrutiny by the courts,” Paul Smith of the Georgetown University School of Law said.
Tennessee’s Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti commented on the issue in July.
“The (Biden) istration has over and over again issued regulations that mangle the law to advance an ideological agenda,” Skrmetti said. “This case is just one of many examples of Tennessee working with other states to block the unlawful abuse of regulatory power.”
Smith forecasts the potential impact of the ruling.
“(The decision) will determine what medical care is available to a large population of young people under the age of 18,” he said. “If the state wins, I think we’ll start to see people trying to extend this form of regulation into adults as well. There are laws about transgender people in sports. Laws about bathrooms. Who can use what bathroom. Then there are these medical care regulations.”
The ACLU, which has attorneys litigating to protect transgender youth healthcare, notes that over the past three years, nearly half the country has imposed limits on transgender healthcare for children.
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