Florida’s attorney general and a Catholic medical group sued the Biden administration Tuesday, demanding that doctors be forced to provide gender transition care against their judgment or face severe penalties.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Tampa by Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody and the Catholic Medical Association (CMA), new rule, On Monday, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a document banning discrimination based on gender identity in health care.
The rule is based on an anti-discrimination provision under the Affordable Care Act, the national health insurance law better known as Obamacare, which prohibits sex discrimination.
In their complaint Moody and the CMA say the new rule goes beyond anti-discrimination law. They say it would force doctors to provide and insure treatments, including puberty blockers, hormones and surgeries for transgender minors and adults, against their medical or ethical judgment.
They also said the rule conflicts with Florida law prohibition of such treatmentsknown as gender-affirming care for minors.
“These rules trample on states’ authority to protect their citizens, and we will not stand by as Biden attempts to use the power of the federal government to illegally stifle Florida’s efforts to protect children,” Moody said.
The plaintiffs argue that the rule is “arbitrary and capricious” under the federal law governing the agency’s rules and violates doctors’ rights to freedom of speech and religion under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. They want the court to issue a decision preventing its implementation.
HHS said it did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Major medical organizations such as the agency and the American Academy of Pediatrics have said gender-affirming care is medically necessary and potentially life-saving, and have called the restrictions discriminatory.
Democratic President Joe Biden 2022 executive order Directed federal agencies such as HHS to ensure access to gender-affirming care and prevent discrimination against transgender people.
Republican-led states passed series of laws targeting transgender people, including bans on gender-affirming care for minors and restrictions on transgender students participating in sports.
Last week, a group of Republican states management sued on a rule barring schools and colleges that receive federal funds from discriminating against transgender students.