Florida's Ban On Gender-Affirming Care For Minors Upheld By Federal Appeals Court

A federal appeals court on Monday allowed Florida to enforce a ban on gender-affirming care for minors.

In a 2-1 decision, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled that the law could be enforced. The federal appeals court ruling has blocked a lower court decision against the ban, while the case is still being appealed.

The law prevents transgender minors from receiving puberty blockers and hormone treatments, even with parental consent, ABC News reported.

It also requires transgender adults to get treatment only from a doctor, not from a nurse or other qualified medical professional. Furthermore, adults must be present with the doctor when signing the consent form for treatment.

In June, U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle had stopped the law from being enforced. During the trial, Florida's attorneys admitted that the state can't prevent someone from identifying as transgender, but argued that it can control medical treatments.

For minors, the law mainly targets puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones, like giving testosterone to someone assigned female at birth. Those already receiving treatment before the law was passed in May 2023 can continue, but surgery, which was uncommon for minors, was still prohibited.

At least 26 states have passed laws that limit or ban medical care for transgender minors, which help them align with their gender identity. Most of these states are facing legal challenges.

Federal judges have ruled that the bans in Arkansas and Florida are unconstitutional, though a higher court has temporarily paused the Florida ruling. In Montana, a judge has temporarily blocked the enforcement of the ban.

The states with these laws are Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Last week, the head of the state's driver's license division Sheri Gipson confirmed that transgender Texans can no longer update their gender on their driver's licenses to match their identity, even if they have a court order or updated birth certificate.

Before this change, people could update the gender on their driver's licenses if there was a mistake, or if they had an updated birth certificate or a certified court record.