A federal district judge halted enforcement of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that blocked prisons from providing hormone therapy and other transgender accommodations to prisoners.
A Republican appointed U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled against the Jan. 20 executive order on Tuesday, saying the directive lacked evidence as to why transgender care “should be handled differently than any other mental health intervention.”
Trump’s executive order was centered around gender issues and stopped the Bureau of Prisons from funding “any medical procedure, treatment or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”
Lamberth’s ruling requires the Bureau of Prisons to revert to pre-Trump procedures. This includes providing transgender inmates with hormone therapy, hair removal products and gender-appropriate undergarments.
Lamberth has ruled in favor of transgender prisoners in the past, having previously ordered prisons to continue offering hormone therapy and other “social accommodations” to inmates who identify as transgender. Lamberth also blocked prisons from moving transgender women to men’s facilities.
The decision by Lamberth also certified a class-action lawsuit brought against the Trump administration by over 1,000 transgender prisoners. The plaintiffs argued that the executive order signed on Trump’s inaugural day in office violated their Eighth Amendment right to medical care.
Tuesday’s ruling was met with praise by transgender activists and organizations.
“This is a critical ruling for our clients and all transgender people in Bureau of Prisons custody,” said Corene Kendrick, ACLU’s National Prison Project Deputy Director. “The denial of medically necessary health care, including gender-affirming health care, to people in prison is a violation of their fundamental constitutional rights.”
The president had not yet spoken out about Tuesday’s ruling by time of publication.
