Washington DC - The conservative-dominated Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected an attempt by President Donald Trump's administration to immediately deny gender-affirming treatment for inmates in federal prisons.
The court's order was unsigned and unexplained, though it mentioned that Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas would have granted the government's request to stop the treatments on an emergency basis.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump made attacking transgender rights a focal point, despite the fact that only a small percentage of Americans are transgender.
When he returned to the White House in January 2025, he signed an executive order saying his government would only "recognize two sexes, male and female," as assigned at birth.
His administration then rolled back a series of measures that had strengthened transgender rights, including for prison inmates. It notably ordered prisoners to serve their sentences in penitentiaries that matched their gender at birth.
But last year, a federal judge blocked that decision.
Then this year, the judge also blocked a policy that would have denied hormone treatments, surgery, and other "social accommodations" to prisoners diagnosed with gender dysphoria, including cosmetics and clothing to help them better align with their gender identity.
The government asked the Supreme Court to put a stay on that ruling, but it refused to do so on Wednesday, without offering any explanation of its reasoning.