Supreme Court rejects Trump policy restricting treatment for transgender prison inmates

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday said the Trump administration cannot enforce a new policy that restricts treatment for transgender inmates in federal prison.

The justices in a brief order rejected an emergency application filed by the administration that sought to block a lower court injunction against the proposal. There are about 1,000 transgender inmates in federal custody.

The policy is part of President Donald Trump’s broader effort to roll back moves to expand transgender rights. It was announced in line with his January 2025 executive order telling federal agencies not to acknowledge the concept of gender identity outside of the “immutable biological classification” of male or female.

The court order included no explanation, saying only that two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, would have granted it.

In several different announcements, the Bureau of Prisons over the last 18 months has said it will not provide gender transition surgery, hormone treatments or “social accommodations” such as wigs, padding or makeup.

That rolled back previous policies that allowed for gender-affirming care, with the government saying that such treatments have recently been called into question by medical professionals. That claim is heavily contested by transgender rights advocates.

If the policy had gone into effect, the only treatment transgender inmates would have been able to receive would be mental health services and potentially medications like antidepressants.

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