Texas Supreme Court Upholds Ban on Child Gender Modification or “Gender-Affirming Care”

The Texas Supreme Court delivered a big ruling Friday as it upheld the state's ban on child gender modification, also called "gender-affirming care" for transgender youths.

The Texas Legislature passed the ban, known as SB 14, in the last legislative session. The ban has been in place since September 1, 2023 and the Texas Supreme Court voted 8-1 to uphold the law. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton took to X to applaud the decision from the Texas Supreme Court.

The ban means that children will not be allowed to take puberty blockers, hormone therapies, or have "transitional surgeries" according to the AP. The AP also reported that in the court's decision, they found that the Texas Legislature made a rational policy choice.

“We conclude the Legislature made a permissible, rational policy choice to limit the types of available medical procedures for children, particularly in light of the relative nascency of both gender dysphoria and its various modes of treatment and the Legislature’s express constitutional authority to regulate the practice of medicine,” Justice Rebeca Aizpuru Huddle wrote in the court’s decision.

Justice Debra Lehrmann wrote the dissenting opinion arguing that the Texas Supreme Court was allowing the state to "legislate away fundamental parental rights". Lehrmann also called the law "cruel and unconstitutional".