Following a long-standing and growing trend, a federal judge from Mississippi struck down legislation set forth by the Biden administration to codify LGBTQ+ protections into the Affordable Care Act. The proposed legislation sought to protect members of the LGBTQ+ community with the very same laws already used to protect against discrimination on the basis of sex. The law was set to go into effect before being blocked by District Judge Louis Guirola Jr., who was appointed to his position by former President George W. Bush in 2004.
In Guirola’s ruling, he states that allowing the legislation to go into effect would “cause concrete, imminent injury in the form of compliance costs or lost federal funding.” The ruling has been supported by 15 states—all Republican-led—which call the legislation “gender ideology over medical reality.”
It is not yet clear whether Guirola or the lawmakers responsible for this action are aware of the irony of their statements. Refusing to codify protection for LGBTQ+ people will inevitably lead to much more real and concrete injury as well as loss of federal funding to states that choose to discriminate and deny care. Furthermore, striking down this legislation is itself a demonstration of gender ideology.
Most directly impacted by this ruling will be trans folk, who have increasingly been targeted by harmful legislation in recent years. So far in this year alone, there have been over 600 bills—a number which has grown year over year for the last five years—put forth that undermine access to gender-affirming healthcare, as well as threaten educators who support trans youth, and more.
Under Guirola’s ruling, doctors and insurance agencies will be free to deny puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy, and gender-affirming surgeries.
This ruling has been called a win for conservatives, but the matter is by no means settled. LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have not and will not give up. For those of us who do not hold office, the way forward is the same as it has always been: support one another, speak out against discrimination, appeal to all levels of government, and vote for officials who will protect and further our rights under the law. Stay strong, stay visible, and remember that you have a right to exist and access the care you need, regardless of what anyone in Mississippi says.
