It is official: President Trump’s empty threats to revoke federal funding from hospitals providing gender-affirming treatment to transgender patients under 19 are simply that: empty.
A preliminary injunction in the case of PFLAG v. Trump was granted by a federal judge on Wednesday and is being enforced nationwide, preventing any Federal institutions from withholding funding to hospitals for providing gender-affirming care.
The initial complaint, PFLAG v. Trump, was filed on February 4th, one day after President Trump signed an executive order entitled “Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation.” The order called upon hospitals across the country that received federal funding to cease providing gender-affirming treatment to individuals under the age of 19, under the threat of revoking their funding if they do not comply with his demands.
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In response to this, the ACLU of Maryland, Lambda Legal, and the law firms Hogan Lovells and Jenner & Block filed a federal lawsuit shortly after on behalf of their plaintiffs, including LGBTQ+ advocacy group PFLAG.
The lawsuit filed in the District Court of Maryland challenges the then-recent EO from the Trump Administration, declaring it as unconstitutional circumvention of Congress control over federal funding. It also breaches the Fifth Amendment’s due process and equal protection clauses by targeting transgender individuals.
The Judge presiding over this case is The Honorable Brendan A. Hurson, an appointee of former President Joe Biden. The judge had previously applied a temporary restraining order that was set to expire on March 5th. On the day of expiration, Judge Hurson ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, wherein the order states that the defendants “are ENJOINED from conditioning, withholding, or terminating federal funding” and ordered that the defendants must provide written notice of the injunction to all Defendants and their employees, contractors, and grantees by March 10th.
This order echos a recent ruling in a lawsuit filed by the states of Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and later Colorado. All 4 states had sued the Trump administration over that same EO, making similar arguments. In the recent development, the Judge presiding over that case also issued a preliminary injunction. Though not nationwide and only applying to the four states listed as plaintiffs, it began to show the cracks forming in the Trump Administration’s foundation, ultimately leading to where we are today.
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