A growing wave of legal rulings is backing conservative states’ efforts to prioritize biological sex over “gender identity” in medical care for minors and school policies, highlighting a widening divide with more liberal jurisdictions.
Federal appeals courts, supported by recent Supreme Court guidance, have upheld laws restricting so-called gender-transition treatments for children and enforcing sex-based distinctions in school facilities.
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently refused to block Oklahoma’s ban on medical sex change treatments for minors.
This ruling upheld a lower court decision that delayed review pending the Supreme Court’s evaluation of a similar Tennessee law.
The panel, made up of judges appointed by Presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump, found that minors seeking puberty blockers and hormones—and their parents’ due process claims—were unlikely to succeed under the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause.
The court cited concerns about permanent health risks of sex change procedures for minors, including “impaired brain development, poor educational development, impact to bone density, underdeveloped genitalia, and infertility,” according to Just the News.
It noted ongoing medical debates but concluded Oklahoma had a “legitimate interest in the health and welfare of its children.”
The court ruled the law’s age and medical restrictions meet rational basis review, typically applied to laws not affecting a protected class.
The 10th Circuit aligned its ruling with the Supreme Court’s recent Tennessee decision, citing little difference between the laws.
It rejected claims that the law was motivated by anti-”trans” animus, pointing to legislative statements focused on protecting children’s health.
In Idaho, U.S. District Judge David Nye denied a request allowing trans-identifying students at Boise High School to use opposite-sex restrooms.
The ruling came amid litigation over Idaho’s Senate Bill 1100, which requires students to use restrooms, locker rooms and overnight accommodations based on biological sex.
The 9th Circuit earlier refused to block this law.
Judge Nye stressed privacy concerns throughout restrooms, beyond individual stalls.
He said, “Separating restrooms by biological sex has been common for centuries” due to “biological differences deserving of privacy.”
He ruled challengers failed to show that Title IX prohibits Idaho’s policy, noting federal law has long allowed sex-segregated facilities.
Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador praised the ruling as “another victory for commonsense and the dignity of women and girls against activists seeking to push a harmful agenda.”
The ACLU, representing minors and parents challenging these laws, condemned the rulings as “tragic results” of Supreme Court decisions and is considering next steps.
Meanwhile, the 8th Circuit is reviewing Arkansas’s ban on “gender-affirming care” for minors, described by officials as “substantively identical” to Tennessee’s law.
The ban was blocked by a federal judge appointed by former President Bill Clinton, but the appeals court requested supplemental briefs after the Supreme Court rulings, with both sides agreeing rational basis review applies.
The ACLU wants the case remanded to consider new evidence on legislators’ attitudes.
Judge Nye has previously blocked an Idaho law banning trans-identifying athletes from women’s sports, citing an “intrusive sex verification process.”
However, he emphasized that restroom privacy issues are distinct and justify upholding Idaho’s Senate Bill 1100.
He expects the Supreme Court will clarify whether trans-identifying individuals qualify as a “suspect or quasi-suspect class,” which would raise judicial scrutiny.
These rulings reinforce the conservative legal view that laws prioritizing biological sex over “gender identity”—especially regarding minors’ medical care and school facilities—are constitutional and aimed at protecting children’s health and privacy.
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Author: Gloriel Howard
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