A federal judge has struck down a sweeping Biden-era regulation that sought to force healthcare providers to comply with transgender ideology under the guise of anti-discrimination law. The rule, issued by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in 2024, attempted to reinterpret “sex” in federal health-care law to mean “gender identity.” Judge Louis Guirola Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi ruled that the administration had overstepped its authority and unlawfully rewritten the meaning of sex discrimination in federal law.
The lawsuit, brought by fifteen Republican-led states, argued that the Biden rule would have compelled doctors and hospitals to perform gender transition procedures — even when doing so conflicted with medical judgment or religious conviction. The states contended that the rule violated the plain meaning of Title IX and the Affordable Care Act, both of which define sex in biological terms. The court agreed, finding that the administration’s reinterpretation of “sex” was not supported by Congress and represented an improper expansion of executive power.
Judge Guirola’s decision restores a crucial boundary between law and regulation. The ruling protects medical professionals from being coerced into practices that contradict sound medical ethics and deeply held moral beliefs.
Conservatives have hailed the decision as a victory for common sense, parental rights, and constitutional restraint. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti praised the ruling, saying it “restores the rule of law and defends the right of states and healthcare providers to treat patients according to science and conscience, not ideology.” The decision follows a string of recent legal setbacks for the Biden administration’s attempts to impose gender identity policies through executive action.
This ruling represents more than just a policy defeat for the White House — it is a reaffirmation of biological truth and the limits of federal authority. At a time when federal agencies increasingly seek to redefine fundamental terms to advance cultural agendas, the court’s message is clear: the executive branch cannot rewrite the law to fit ideology. Americans deserve a government that respects both science and freedom — and this decision marks an important step in that direction.