Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Gender-Affirming Care for Transgender Youth
WASHINGTON, DC (June 18, 2025) – Today, the Supreme Court ruled that Tennessee can enforce its ban on gender-affirming health care for transgender youth. This means doctors in the state are prohibited from providing care that has been proven critical for transgender people to thrive and determined to be safe, appropriate, and effective by all major medical associations.
In response, Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Women’s Law Center, issued the following statement:
“This is a shameful moment in our country’s history. With this cruel decision, the Supreme Court has not only failed transgender youth and their families in Tennessee but also paved the way for further restrictions on health care across the country. Rather than following sound precedent, the Supreme Court has once again abandoned legal analysis to advance a regressive agenda, just as it did three years ago when it overturned the constitutional right to abortion. We have already seen the devastating consequences when extremist agendas override science, medical expertise, and the freedom to make personal health care decisions. We will fight to ensure that trans youth can get the care they need despite today’s harmful ruling.
For generations, sex stereotypes have been used to limit people’s futures, blocking women’s access to education and work, denying reproductive freedom, and strictly policing family life. This ruling is part of that same legacy of control and government intrusion. By resuscitating zombie case law that enabled denial of insurance coverage for pregnancy, and doubling down on harmful abortion precedent, the Supreme Court deliberately ignored the discrimination in front of it. But we refuse to accept this rollback of our rights. We will keep fighting for our freedom, our future, and for a country where everyone can live safely, fully, and with dignity.”
