The Department of Justice is suing the state of Utah, including the Utah Department of Corrections, for allegedly discriminating against a transgender inmate with gender dysphoria. The DOJ claims that the state violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by denying the inmate equal access to healthcare services and failing to modify policies to avoid discrimination. The transgender inmate, who was unnamed in court documents, had removed his own testicles after suffering from gender dysphoria. The DOJ asserts that people with gender dysphoria are protected by the ADA and are entitled to equal access to medical care like anyone else with a disability.
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke emphasized that delays or refusals to provide medical treatment for people with gender dysphoria can cause irreparable harm, including distress, depression, self-treatment attempts, and even suicide. The DOJ’s lawsuit alleges that the Utah Department of Corrections imposed unnecessary eligibility criteria for evaluation and treatment of gender dysphoria for incarcerated individuals and denied the inmate’s requests, including housing transfers, male-to-female hormone prescriptions, and requested modifications. The inmate performed self-surgery to remove her testicles in May 2023, leading to hospitalization and additional surgery.
The Heritage Foundation legal fellow, Sarah Marshall Perry, criticized the DOJ’s interpretation of the Americans with Disabilities Act by stating that the ADA does not include gender identity disorders or gender dysphoria as disabilities for the purposes of federal civil rights law. She warned that states may be pressured to provide Gender-affirming care at taxpayer expense until another federal circuit clarifies the exclusion of gender identity disorders and gender dysphoria from the ADA. The ACLU also sued Indiana over the denial of sex reassignment surgery for an inmate who had strangled an 11-month-old to death, highlighting the ongoing legal battles surrounding transgender inmates and their access to medical care.
After the DOJ’s investigation of Utah’s penitentiary found delays in the transgender inmate’s requests, the Utah Department of Corrections executive director expressed disagreement with the DOJ on key issues and disappointment with their approach. The state of California became the first to grant sex-change surgical procedures and non-invasive prescriptions to inmates in 2017, and Colorado is also moving towards becoming the first state with segregated holding cells for transgender women in prison. These legal disputes underscore the ongoing debate around transgender inmates’ rights to medical care and the obligations of correctional facilities to provide appropriate accommodations.
