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Supreme Court denies Trump administration bid to end transgender inmate care

Supreme Court denies Trump administration bid to end transgender inmate care

Rule Changes

7-2 order keeps gender-affirming care available to federal prisoners while lawsuit proceeds

October 21st, 2026: Supreme Court denies stay request

Overview

Updated Oct 22

The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to let the Trump administration enforce new restrictions on medical care for transgender federal inmates. The 7-2 order leaves a lower-court block in place, so the roughly 1,000 people covered by a class action can keep receiving hormone therapy and other gender-affirming care while the case continues.

The policy comes from a January 2025 executive order that barred federal funds for medical procedures or treatments meant to make an inmate look more like the opposite sex. After the order, the Justice Department said it was disappointed but would pursue its appeal in the D.C. Circuit to reinstate the Bureau of Prisons policy.

Why it matters

The ruling keeps gender-affirming care available to roughly 1,000 transgender federal inmates while courts decide whether the Bureau of Prisons can cut it off.

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Key Indicators

~1,000
People covered by the class action
The lawsuit represents about 1,000 transgender people in federal custody.
600
Inmates receiving hormone therapy in 2025
BOP reported this figure in court records.
7-2
Supreme Court vote denying the stay request
Justices Thomas and Alito dissented.

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People Involved

Donald Trump
Donald Trump
President of the United States
Signed the January 2025 executive order that triggered the BOP policy
 Royce C. Lamberth
Royce C. Lamberth
Senior U.S. District Judge, District of Columbia
Issued the preliminary injunction blocking the BOP policy
 Samuel Alito
Samuel Alito
Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Dissented from the October 21, 2026 order
 Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas
Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Dissented from the October 21, 2026 order
 D. John Sauer
D. John Sauer
Solicitor General of the United States
Argued for the administration in the emergency petition
 Li Nowlin-Sohl
Li Nowlin-Sohl
Attorney for the transgender inmates
Representing the plaintiffs in the class action

Organizations Involved

FB
Federal Bureau of Prisons
Federal Agency
Defendant in the lawsuit; issued the policy at issue

The federal agency that manages the U.S. prison system and issued the policy barring gender-affirming care for transgender inmates.
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Supreme Court
Federal Court
Denied the administration's stay request on October 21, 2026

The highest federal court in the United States, which denied the administration's emergency petition.
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
Nonprofit Organization
Represents the transgender inmates in the lawsuit

The civil rights organization representing the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit.

Timeline

January 2025 October 2026

11 events Latest: October 21st, 2026 · 3 weeks ago Showing 8 of 11
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Supreme Court denies stay request

    Latest Legal

    Supreme Court denies stay request, 7-2, keeping the injunction in place.

  2. Justice Department says it will pursue D.C. Circuit appeal

    Legal

    After the Supreme Court denied its stay request, the Justice Department said the order was not a final decision on the merits and that it would pursue its appeal in the D.C. Circuit.

  3. Administration petitions Supreme Court

    Legal

    Trump administration asks Supreme Court to block Lamberth's order.

  4. D.C. Circuit rejects stay request

    Legal

    Divided D.C. Circuit panel rejects government's request to pause Lamberth's order.

  5. Lamberth issues order barring policy

    Legal

    Lamberth issues order barring BOP from implementing the 2026 policy.

  6. District court issues preliminary injunction

    Legal

    District court issues preliminary injunction blocking the Program Statement and ordering care to continue.

  7. BOP issues Program Statement 5260.01

    Policy

    BOP issues Program Statement 5260.01, maintaining the ban on gender-affirming health care.

  8. District court enjoins the ban

    Legal

    Federal district court preliminarily enjoins the ban on gender-affirming care.

  9. Transgender inmates file class action

    Legal

    Three transgender inmates file class action lawsuit challenging the ban.

  10. BOP issues implementing memoranda

    Policy

    BOP issues memoranda implementing the executive order's ban on gender-affirming care.

  11. Trump signs executive order on gender-affirming care

    Policy

    Trump signs executive order barring federal funds for gender-affirming care for inmates.

Scenarios

1

D.C. Circuit upholds injunction on appeal

Possible Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: The D.C. Circuit panel already rejected the government's stay request on September 18, suggesting the court is sympathetic to the inmates' position.

The case proceeds on the merits in the D.C. Circuit. If the court upholds Lamberth's injunction, the BOP must continue providing gender-affirming care while the lawsuit continues. The administration could then petition the Supreme Court for review on the merits.

2

Supreme Court reverses on merits

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: The administration's emergency petition argued the district court 'substituted its own policy judgment' for the BOP's and denied prison administrators deference.

The case returns to the Supreme Court on the merits docket. The Court could rule in favor of the administration, finding the BOP's policy change was within its authority. This would allow the policy to take effect.

3

Administration withdraws or revises the policy

Unlikely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: The BOP said it adopted the policy 'independently of' the executive order, suggesting the agency could revise it to address the court's concerns.

The BOP could withdraw Program Statement 5260.01 or revise it to address the court's concerns about the administrative record. This would moot the lawsuit or narrow its scope.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

July 2017 - January 2019

Military transgender ban (2017-2019)

Trump announced a ban on transgender military service in July 2017. Federal courts blocked it, but the Supreme Court allowed the ban to take effect in January 2019 while litigation continued.

Then

The ban went into effect while challenges proceeded in lower courts.

Now

The policy remained in place for years, showing the Supreme Court's willingness to let transgender-related restrictions take effect during litigation.

Why this matters now

In the military case, the Supreme Court allowed the policy to proceed. Here, the Court blocked the policy, showing a different approach to transgender-related restrictions.

June 2020

Bostock v. Clayton County (2020)

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act protects transgender workers from employment discrimination.

Then

The ruling extended workplace protections to transgender Americans.

Now

It became a key precedent in transgender rights litigation, though its scope beyond employment remains contested.

Why this matters now

The ruling showed the Court's willingness to protect transgender rights under federal law, a backdrop for the current dispute over medical care for transgender inmates.

Sources

(13)
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AP News The Washington Post Law360 American Civil Liberties Union Washington Examiner Just The News ClickOnDetroit Truthout The Independent SCOTUSblog Lemmy.World Bloomberg Law KFF Health News