U.S. Catholic Groups Challenge Federal Mandate on Gender Transition

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On December 15, several Catholic hospitals, a Catholic university, and the Mercy sisters who run health clinics challenged a federal mandate to conduct gender transition proceedings with the United States Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit.

The groups are continuing a fight they had already won when two lower federal courts overturned what has been described as the Affordable Care Act’s “transgender mandate”, claiming it was a violation of the law. Law on the restoration of religious freedom.

The Biden administration appealed the two decisions in the 8th Circuit.

Becket, a Washington-based nonprofit law firm that represents some of the Catholic groups, has described the case on its website as a challenge to a policy that threatens Catholic doctors, hospitals and clinics “with sanctions. millions of dollars for sex discrimination unless they perform controversial gender transition procedures. “

Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, said in a Dec. 15 statement that the two federal courts that seized “this controversial warrant have declared it bad for patients, bad for doctors and bad for freedom. religious”.

He also said the federal government “had nothing to do to force doctors to perform controversial procedures that could be deeply damaging to patients,” and he hoped the appeals court would make “a common sense decision.” that would be good for everyone.

In 2020, the Trump administration put in place conscience protections for doctors opposing the warrant, but the effort was blocked by the courts.

In 2016, the federal government began implementing a mandate requiring physicians to perform gender transition procedures on any patient, including children, and required private insurance companies – with the exception of plans run by Medicare and Medicaid – and many employers cover gender reassignment therapy or face severe penalties and lawsuits.

In August 2016, Becket, joined by eight state governments, filed a lawsuit in Texas on behalf of the Franciscan Alliance, a religious hospital network sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration and the Christian Medical & Dental Associations. , defending them against this government mandate.

Becket filed a parallel lawsuit in federal court in November 2016 on behalf of Catholic groups in North Dakota, including the Sisters of Mercy, the University of Mary at Fargo, and the SMP Health System, sponsored by the Sisters of Mary of the Presentation. The state of North Dakota has also joined in Becket’s legal challenge.

In 2016, the federal court in North Dakota suspended the rule, and in 2019, the federal court in Texas overturned it. Both courts said the policy was an unlawful abuse by a federal agency and a likely violation of religious freedom.

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In 2020, the Trump administration put in place conscience protections for doctors opposing the warrant, but the effort was blocked by the courts.

On January 21, 2021, the United States District Court for the Eastern Division of the District of North Dakota quashed the transgender warrant. On August 9, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas granted the plaintiffs a permanent warrant dispensation.

In November, the Supreme Court dismissed an appeal from a Catholic hospital in California that had been sued for refusing to perform a hysterectomy on a transgender patient.

The court ruling, released without comment, sent the case back to state court.

When the Catholic hospital was sued in 2016, a lower court ruled in favor, but an appeals court overturned that decision. The hospital therefore appealed to the Supreme Court in 2020, saying its case “poses a profound threat to the ability of faith-based health facilities to advance their healing ministries in accordance with the teachings of their faith.”

A brief filed by the Catholic Health Association said the appeal court’s decision “bodes ill for all religious organizations that serve the public according to the precepts of religious education.”

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