LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Gender transition care for Kentucky children remains banned after a federal appeals court upheld the ban, while legal challenges to part of a state law play out.

Among other things, Senate Bill 150 bans gender transition care for children.

Before it became law earlier this year, seven transgender children and their families challenged SB 150’s ban on puberty blockers and hormone therapy, claiming it violates constitutional rights.

A federal court temporarily blocked that part of the law, and Attorney General Daniel Cameron appealed successfully to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, putting the ban back in place.  

This week, the Sixth Circuit denied the ACLU of Kentucky’s motion challenging that ruling, so the ban is still in effect as legal challenges play out.

Chief Judge Jeffrey Sutton wrote, “Both sides have the same fear, just in opposite directions—one saying the procedures create health risks that cannot be undone, the other saying the absence of such procedures creates risks that cannot be undone. This choice, in this instance, is not for judges to make. Elected representatives … made these precise cost-benefit decisions and did not trigger any reason for judges to second-guess them.”

Chris Hartman, executive director of The Fairness Campaign, called it “another disappointing day for transgender kids in Kentucky and their families, who unfortunately have been told once again by some of the highest courts in our land that their rights are up for debate.”

In a statement Thursday, Attorney General Daniel Cameron said in part:

“These gender interventions, billed as medical care, cause permanent harm to vulnerable children and their health … I am proud to carry the mantle for this important law.”

The ACLU of Kentucky called the ruling a “temporary setback” and said it would “continue to fight for equal rights and equal protection under the law.”