LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The country’s highest court will weigh in on whether states can ban gender transition care for children. On Monday, The U.S. Supreme Court announced it will take up the highly contested issue later this year.
The court will hear a Tennessee case that bans the use of puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors. This law mirrors a section of the controversial Senate Bill 150 that was passed by the Kentucky legislature in 2023. The broad reaching bill banned gender transition services, and affected transgender youth is several other ways.
As Corey Shapiro, legal director for the ACLU of Kentucky, explains, this Supreme Court decision will set a national precedent.
“It’s whether certain states will have the ability to enact bans on this medically necessary care,” Shapiro stated.
In Sept. 2023, a federal appeals court ruled that Kentucky’s SB 150 and the similar Tennessee law could be enacted. Shapiro believes the two violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th. Amendment.
“The case the Supreme Court is deciding is whether the Sixth Circuit, that appellate decision, whether it was correctly decided and that Sixth Circuit decision is exactly what allowed Kentucky to enforce this ban,” Shapiro said.
While plaintiffs from both Tennessee and Kentucky were named in the 2023 ruling, only one plaintiff in the Tennessee lawsuit will go before the Supreme Court. It will be the United States Department of Justice, who argued Tennessee’s law violated the Constitution. The Department of Justice was not involved in Kentucky’s case. Shapiro said at this time, it’s unclear what part, if any, Kentucky will play in the forthcoming legal process.
“We’re hopeful that because the Supreme Court took this case and recognized that there’s a need to review what the Sixth Circuit did, that hopefully this medically necessary care will be restored,” Shapiro said.
While the ACLU of Kentucky believes these medical services should be restored, others feel differently.
The Family Foundation,for passaging a right-leaning lobbying group that advocated for the passage of SB 150, believes the law should remain in place. In a statement released following Monday’s announcement, Executive Director David Walls said in part, “We are encouraged that the Supreme Court has decided to hear this important case, and we urge the High Court to uphold these commonsense laws protecting children from harmful ‘gender transitions.’”
Republican Attorney General Russell Coleman told Spectrum News 1 on this topic, “As parents and public officials, we have a responsibility to protect our children from harm. That’s exactly what legislators in Kentucky and Tennessee did, creating commonsense measures to safeguard minors from life-altering medical procedures. We will closely follow this case and look forward to supporting our colleagues in Tennessee.”
The Supreme Court will not begin hearing new cases until October. A ruling on this case is not expected until sometime next year.