A Missouri judge has issued a temporary restraining order against a new emergency rule proposed by Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey. The rule would have required individuals, both minors and adults, to complete a year of therapy and meet other requirements before receiving gender-affirming treatments such as surgery, hormones, and puberty blockers. Missouri’s attorney general’s office had issued the rule because state legislature had not passed similar restrictions. Bailey had proposed the rule on April 27, but a St Louis County judge granted a temporary restraining order and a pending hearing is scheduled for July 20. The recent move comes just ahead of the legislature’s approval of a ban on minors receiving care.
Legal experts have pointed out that if the rule takes effect, Missouri would be the first US state to restrict gender-affirming care for adults, and the first to enact such restrictions through emergency rule-making instead of a new law.
Missouri’s American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a lawsuit to stop the rule, arguing that it violates the rights of thousands of transgender individuals in Missouri seeking affirming care. The ACLU also argues that Attorney General Bailey has overstepped his powers by unilaterally legislating, and that the rule may violate consumer protection laws.
Circuit Judge Ellen Ribaudo granted the temporary restraining order until May 15 unless extended, arguing that the plaintiffs would suffer “immediate and irreparable loss, damage, or injury” and would be at “high risk” of losing their current medical care.
Opponents of the rule have criticized it on the grounds that it will discriminate against transgender individuals. They argue that it will make it difficult or impossible for transgender people to access necessary and life-saving healthcare, and will exacerbate existing inequalities in healthcare access. Transgender Missourians have rallied outside of the state capitol building to protest the rule.
The ruling highlights the increasing political and social tensions over transgender rights in the US. The Biden administration has reversed several Trump-era restrictions on transgender rights, but legal and political battles are expected to continue. The Missouri case is part of a larger national debate about the rights of transgender individuals to access care and to be treated with dignity and respect.
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