Federal judge ends Biden-era attempt to broaden Title IX protections to include transgender people

A federal judge in Mississippi on Wednesday struck down a Biden-era Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rule that extended federal health anti-discrimination protections to transgender health care. 

Judge Louis Guirola Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi ruled in favor of a coalition of 16 GOP-led states that sued over the rule.

The court ruled that HHS exceeded its authority by redefining sex under Title IX to prohibit gender-identity bias because a statute can’t “be divorced” from the time and reason for its enactment. In 1972, the definition of "sex" focused on biological distinctions between males and females, according to Bloomberg Law. 

"In the opinion of the Court, Congress only contemplated biological sex when it enacted Title IX in 1972," Guirola wrote. "Therefore, the Court finds that HHS exceeded its authority by implementing regulations redefining sex discrimination and prohibiting gender-identity discrimination."

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, who led the challenge, celebrated the decision in a statement.

“When Biden-era bureaucrats tried to illegally rewrite our laws to force radical gender ideology into every corner of American health care, Tennessee stood strong and stopped them,” Skrmetti said.  “Our fifteen-state coalition worked together to protect the right of healthcare providers across America to make decisions based on evidence, reason, and conscience.  

"This decision restores not just common sense but also constitutional limits on federal overreach, and I am proud of the team of excellent attorneys who fought this through to the finish," he added.

The lawsuit was brought by attorneys general in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.