Judge rules federal Bureau of Prisons must continue providing hormone therapy to transgender inmates

A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) must continue providing transgender inmates with gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy, despite an executive order from President Donald Trump.

A group of transgender inmates sued the Trump administration to block the executive order in March, after the president ordered the bureau in January to revise its medical care policies so federal money isn't spent “for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled that existing federal law prohibits prison officials from depriving inmates of medications and lifestyle accommodations that its medical staff have already deemed appropriate. 

“In light of the plaintiffs’ largely personal motives for undergoing gender-affirming care, neither the BOP nor the Executive Order provides any serious explanation as to why the treatment modalities covered by the Executive Order or implementing memoranda should be handled differently than any other mental health intervention,” the judge wrote.

The judge's order extends beyond the three transgender inmates who sued the administration. Lamberth also agreed to certify a class of plaintiffs consisting of anyone who is or will be incarcerated in federal prisons, per the Associated Press.

The order comes as the BOP provides hormone therapy to more than 600 inmates diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

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