https://www.reuters.com/legal/us-judges-halt-healthcare-bans-transgender-youth-2023-07-03

US judges halt healthcare bans for transgender youth

July 3 (Reuters) - In state after state, conservative lawmakers this year have banned medical procedures for transgender youth. Now, a growing number of federal judges are blocking those laws from taking effect.

U.S. district court judges have halted such laws in six states - Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee - finding that they infringe on the constitutional guarantee to equal protection under the 14th Amendment.

Two lawsuits challenging laws in Montana and Georgia have yet to be ruled on, and in Oklahoma the opposing sides in May agreed to set aside the law until the court case is heard.

The court rulings offer temporary relief from the recent rush of bills banning transgender youth from receiving treatments such as puberty blockers and hormone therapy. Twenty states have passed such measures, with the bulk of them signed into law this year.