Appeals Court Upholds Arkansas’ Controversial Transgender Care Ban
A federal appeals court has upheld a law in Arkansas that prohibits doctors from providing gender transition medical treatment to minors. On October 17, 2023, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled by an 8-2 margin to reverse a previous decision by a lower court that had blocked the implementation of this law. This ruling allows Arkansas to enforce its legislation, making it the first state in the United States to ban such treatments for minors.
The appeals court referenced a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court in June, which upheld a similar ban in Tennessee. In that case, the Supreme Court determined that the law was constitutional and did not discriminate against transgender individuals. The appeals court aligned with Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, a Republican, who argued that the law does not infringe upon the equal protection rights of transgender minors as outlined in the U.S. Constitution.
In a statement following the ruling, Griffin expressed his support: “I applaud the court’s decision and am pleased that children in Arkansas will be protected from experimental procedures.” This sentiment was echoed by Arkansas Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who described the ruling as a victory for “common sense” and for children.
Arkansas enacted the ban in 2021, when the state’s Republican-led legislature overrode a veto from then-Governor Asa Hutchinson. The law, known as the Save Adolescents From Experimentation (SAFE) Act, prohibits treatments including puberty blockers, hormones, and surgical procedures for minors. In challenging the law, four families of transgender children and two medical professionals argued that it violated parental due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
In the majority opinion, U.S. Circuit Judge Duane Benton stated that parents have never had the right to obtain medical treatments that the government has deemed illegal. He criticized the previous ruling by U.S. District Judge Jay Moody, who in 2023 found that the law discriminated against transgender individuals and inflicted “immediate and irreparable harm” to minors. Judge Benton argued that the lower court’s decision was inconsistent with the Supreme Court’s ruling regarding the Tennessee law.
Dissenting opinions were voiced by U.S. Circuit Judge Jane Kelly, who argued there is a “startling lack of evidence” connecting Arkansas’ ban on gender-affirming care to its stated goal of protecting children.
Following the ruling, Holly Dickson, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Arkansas, condemned the decision: “This is a tragically unjust result for transgender Arkansans, their doctors, and their families.” Dickson asserted that the state failed to demonstrate that the law benefits children and instead described it as dangerous and harmful. She vowed that the ACLU would continue to advocate for the rights and dignity of transgender individuals in Arkansas.
This ruling comes on the heels of a similar decision by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which recently upheld a transgender care ban in Oklahoma, further solidifying a trend among various states to implement similar legislation.
As the situation evolves, the impact of these rulings on families and healthcare providers in Arkansas and beyond remains significant, sparking ongoing debates about the rights of transgender minors and the role of parents in making healthcare decisions for their children.
