United States – A U.S. judge on Wednesday restrained the Biden administration from enforcing new regulations regarding discrimination on the basis of anything relating to sex, including gender identity, in healthcare environments.
Judge Guirola’s Decision
Supporting 15 Republican-led states, U. S. District Judge Louis Guirola in Gulfport, Mississippi, for the elimination of the new regulatory rule, stating that it stretches beyond the administration’s power, as reported by Reuters.
Impact on Transgender Protections
The rule was approved in May and was to go into operation on Friday. It says that the nondiscrimination federal provision in the Health Insurance Act, commonly known as The Affordable Care Act, covers the discrimination against transgender people.
The U. S. Department of HHS, the agency that issued the rule, did not reply to a request for information on the issue within a set time, as reported by Reuters.
Background and Executive Order
The rule emerged after former President Joe Biden, a Democrat, signed in 2022 an executive order directing federal agencies, including the HHS, to steps that would safeguard the access of trans people to health care services.