The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will remove gender dysphoria from disabilities protected under federal law, but it’s still unclear whether 17 Republican state attorneys general will continue a related lawsuit that could dismantle federal protections for all people with disabilities.
Last fall, Texas GOP Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the federal government over the Biden administration’s addition of a gender identity-related disorder to the disabilities protected under a portion of federal law known as Section 504.
Republican attorneys general from 16 other states joined the lawsuit: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah and West Virginia.
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But they faced a swift backlash earlier this year. Disability advocates pointed to parts of their lawsuit that asked the court to find all of Section 504 unconstitutional, not just the update that included gender dysphoria.
If the court agrees, advocates fear that schools, workplaces, hospitals and other entities could refuse to provide disability accommodations they’ve been required to provide for the past 50 years.
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AGs hurried to distance themselves. Arkansas Republican Attorney General Tim Griffin, Georgia Republican Attorney General Chris Carr and others adamantly denied that interpretation and said their only goal was to remove protections for people with gender dysphoria.
The new HHS ruling seems to achieve what the AGs said they wanted. It essentially declares that the Biden update adding gender dysphoria to disability law can’t be enforced.
But the broad language of the lawsuit leaves open the possibility, some experts say, for the court to strike down the entirety of Section 504 protections.
The state AGs’ position should become clearer in a few days. They’re scheduled to file an update with the court on April 21.
Anna Claire Vollers can be reached at avollers@stateline.org.
Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org.
