A Judge is completely blocking Florida laws dealing with gender-affirming care touted by Gov. Ron DeSantis and GOP legislators.
U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle, who had previously blocked Florida's ban on Medicaid treatments for gender dysphoria, declared unconstitutional state laws and rules that prevent minors from accessing puberty blockers and hormones.
"Transgender opponents are of course free to hold their beliefs," Hinkle wrote. "But they are not free to discriminate against transgender individuals just for being transgender. In time, discrimination against transgender individuals will diminish, just as racism and misogyny have diminished. To paraphrase a civil-rights advocate from an earlier time, the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."
Hinkle's ruling applies to both adults and minors seeking treatment.
Bryan Griffin, a spokesman for DeSantis, said the state would appeal Hinkle's decision.
"As we've seen here in Florida, the United Kingdom, and across Europe, there is no quality evidence to support the chemical and physical mutilation of children," Griffin said. "These procedures do permanent, life-altering damage to children, and history will look back on this fad in horror."
Hinkle's ruling does not apply to any type of gender-affirming surgery, but to bans on other types of treatments that had been in place. The Judge also cited testimony from physicians and surgeons who had achieved results with treatments such as puberty blockers.
The legal ruling is a substantial setback to both the DeSantis administration and the legislators who sought to ban certain types of care, including those available to minors.
In his decision, Hinkle concluded that some lawmakers backing the legislation acted with "discriminatory animus" — noting, for example, Rep. Webster Barnaby's public tirade where he called opponents of the bill "mutants" and "demons."
The initial lawsuit was brought on behalf of transgender children and parents. The litigation was filed against top health officials in the DeSantis administration and the boards that regulate doctors.
No comments:
Post a Comment