Trump rule, meant to undo Obama’s decision, challenged by two transgender women
WASHINGTON:
A U.S. judge on Monday blocked a Trump administration rule that would remove protections from transgender people facing health discrimination.
New York-based U.S. District Court Judge Frederic Block ruled that the proposed regulations released by the Department of Health and Human Services could not go into effect Tuesday as scheduled.
The administration rule states that federal law that prohibits discrimination in health care “on the basis of sex” does not cover gender identity or gender stereotypes.
Block said the legal basis for the settlement was now in question after the major Supreme Court ruling in June that LGBT people are protected under a federal law using similar language that prohibits discrimination in employment.
Next, legal experts predicted the ruling could impact other pending cases involving other federal discrimination laws.
“When the Supreme Court announces a major decision, it seems a good idea to pause and think about the impact of the decision,” Block wrote in his decision on Monday.
In 2016, President Barack Obama’s administration introduced earlier rules that would have protected LGBT people under the health care discrimination provision, which is part of the 2010 Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.
The Trump rule, intended to undo Obama’s decision, has been challenged by two transgender women, Tanya Asapansa-Johnson Walker and Cecilia Gentili, who are represented by the LGBT rights group Human Rights Campaign.
“We are pleased that the court has recognized this irrational rule for what it is: discrimination, outright,” group chairman Alphonso David said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said officials were “disappointed” with the decision.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
