Montgomery, Ala. — On Thursday, a federal court reinstated Alabama’s prohibition on gender-affirming treatments for minors, reversing a previous decision that had temporarily halted the law. This development occurred approximately five months after an appellate panel overturned an initial ruling that had blocked the law’s enforcement.
The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a brief two-page order lifting the previous injunction against Alabama’s 2022 legislation, which criminalizes the provision of hormone therapy or puberty blockers to individuals under the age of 19. Medical professionals found guilty under this law could face up to a decade in prison.
The legislation, which also prohibits genital surgeries on minors—a practice that medical professionals assert does not occur in Alabama—was initially suspended by U.S. District Judge Liles C. Burke in 2022. Judge Burke ruled that the law unconstitutionally infringed upon parental rights to make decisions for their children and that the state had not sufficiently demonstrated the treatments to be harmful.
Following this, the state appealed to the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. In August, a three-judge panel, referencing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which eliminated federal abortion protections, declared that there was no inherent “fundamental right” to gender-affirming care.
The plaintiffs have requested a full review of the panel’s decision by the entire 11th Circuit. Last November, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall urged the court to remove the injunction, stating on Thursday that the Alabama Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act would now enable better protection of children from “untested and life-altering” medical procedures. He described the court’s decision as a significant triumph.
Conversely, transgender youth and their families have emphasized the vital importance of gender-affirming care for their well-being. Following the 11th Circuit’s decision, some expressed concerns about their ability to continue residing in Alabama.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys have vowed to persist in their fight against the “unlawful ban,” supporting both parents and children affected by it. They argue that the ban will detrimentally impact thousands of transgender adolescents in Alabama and place parents in a difficult position of being unable to access necessary medical care for their children. They highlighted that the district court’s initial order to block the ban came after extensive testimony from parents, doctors, and medical experts about the ban’s harmful effects and the lack of medical justification for it. The attorneys expressed that the recent ruling would adversely affect families throughout the state
