Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the Biden administration over a new federal rule that he says would require states to pay for gender care procedures for transgender people through their Medicaid programs and require health care providers to perform them.
“This is yet another example of Joe Biden trying to sidestep the Constitution and use agency rulemaking to advance unpopular, unlawful, and destructive policies,” Paxton wrote in a press release.
At issue is a new Biden administration rule regarding a section of the Affordable Care Act that pertains to nondiscrimination. The section particularly bans discrimination based on gender.
In 2016, the Obama Administration interpreted it to protect against gender identity and sex stereotyping but not sexual orientation. Four years later, the Trump administration didn’t change the section but suggested it would interpret sex to mean only sex assigned at birth.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued the Biden administration over a new federal rule that he says would require states to pay for gender care procedures for transgender people through their Medicaid programs and require health care providers to perform them.
“This is yet another example of Joe Biden trying to sidestep the Constitution and use agency rulemaking to advance unpopular, unlawful, and destructive policies,” Paxton wrote in a press release.
At issue is a new Biden administration rule regarding a section of the Affordable Care Act that pertains to nondiscrimination. The section particularly bans discrimination based on gender.
In 2016, the Obama Administration interpreted it to protect against gender identity and sex stereotyping but not sexual orientation. Four years later, the Trump administration didn’t change the section but suggested it would interpret sex to mean only sex assigned at birth.
The lawsuit drew immediate outrage from one LGBTQ rights group, Equality Texas, which said that transgender people have traditionally been denied care by Medicaid for care related to gender dysphoria. The Biden administration rule, the group estimated, would help tens of thousands of Texans.
“Health care for transgender adults remains legal in the state of Texas,” said Ricardo Martinez, CEO of the group. “And while Ken Paxton seems to have little regard for medical freedom, it’s essential that trans adults who use Medicaid have access to vital care.”
Source: Texas Tribune BY Juan Salinas II
Photo: Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune
