In a 2-1 decision, the 11th Circuit lets Florida’s transgender health ban go into effect pending the state’s appeal of the decision blocking the law
Today, a divided panel of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals stayed a federal district court’s decision blocking enforcement of Florida laws that prohibit health care for transgender minors and restrict it for transgender adults. The 2-1 ruling allows the state to enforce the laws while the court hears Florida’s appeal of the June 11 decision that found SB 254 and the medical board’s rules unlawfully target transgender people.
In his dissenting opinion, Judge Wilson found that the district court had “found sufficient evidence to support the conclusion that the law’s passage was based on abhorrent discrimination against transgender adults and minors” and that “denying access to gender reassignment care would cause unnecessary suffering.”
The organizations representing the plaintiffs Doe vs LadapoGLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC), National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR), Southern Legal Counsel (SLC), and Lowenstein Sandler LLP issued the following statement in response to today’s ruling:
“We are deeply disappointed by this decision and the panel’s disregard for the district court’s careful findings and adherence to recent Eleventh Circuit precedent. Reinstating these discriminatory restrictions will deprive transgender adults and youth of life-saving treatments and prevent Florida parents from making medical decisions that are right for their children. As the district court found based on extensive evidence, the record shows that these extraordinary restrictions were based on disapproval of transgender people and served no purpose other than to harm transgender Floridians. The plaintiffs in this case are considering their options and will take every possible step to protect their right to equal treatment under Florida law, which these restrictions blatantly violate. We will continue to fight for transgender Floridians and their families, and for the right of all to make health care decisions without government interference.”
Further information on the case Doe vs Ladapo is available here.
