❓WHAT HAPPENED: A federal judge appointed by former President Joe Biden announced he will grant a motion by Democrat states to vacate a declaration by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. banning doctors from performing gender transition procedures such as breast amputations on minors.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: U.S. District Court Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), and officials from New York and 18 other states.
📍WHEN & WHERE: The announcement was made on Thursday in Oregon, with the judge’s formal written opinion expected soon.
💬KEY QUOTE: “No one should lose access to medically necessary health care because their federal government tried to interfere in decisions that belong in doctors’ offices.” – Letitia James
🎯IMPACT: The ruling challenges the HHS declaration, potentially allowing states to bypass restrictions on inflicting irreversible gender transition procedures on minors.
On Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, appointed by former President Joe Biden in late 2024, announced that he intends to grant a motion brought by a coalition of Democrat-led states to vacate a declaration issued by Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. banning gender transition procedures such as breast amputations for minors.
The declaration, released in December 2025, stated that puberty blockers, hormone therapy, and surgeries are “neither safe nor effective” treatments for gender dysphoria, and do not meet professionally recognized standards of healthcare. It also warned that providers offering these services could face exclusion from federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
During a lengthy hearing, Judge Kasubhai indicated he would issue a formal written opinion soon and that he plans to deny the government’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit and grant the states’ request for summary judgment, effectively blocking the declaration’s enforcement.
The lawsuit, brought by Democrat-led states including New York and involving a total of 19 states plus Washington, D.C., argued that the declaration unlawfully overstepped HHS authority, interfered with state regulation of medicine, and violated federal rulemaking requirements.
New York Attorney General Letitia James stated, “No one should lose access to medically necessary health care because their federal government tried to interfere in decisions that belong in doctors’ offices.”
However, earlier this year in New York, a jury awarded a 22-year-old “detransitioner” $1.6 million for pain and suffering and $400,000 for future medical expenses after a psychologist and a surgeon performed transgender procedures on her, including a double mastectomy at age 16.
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