Nearly half of the 20 U.S. states that restrict gender-affirming hormone therapy are currently being questioned in federal court, with the primary issue being whether these bans violate the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

The big question: The central issue of these lawsuits is whether bans on gender-affirming care violate the Fourteenth Amendment, which states that people cannot be denied liberty without due process or equal protection under the law.
* Abigail Moncrieff of Cleveland State University says this is a new issue as gender-affirming care has never been legally contested before.

State of play: Opinions on these cases are divided into two camps so far.
* The first camp, consisting of multiple district courts, argues that parents probably have a right to give their children gender-affirming hormone therapy, seeing it as effective and safe.
* The second camp, represented by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, argues that bans on gender-affirming care likely do not violate the Fourteenth Amendment, cautioning courts against creating new constitutional rights that restrict state experimentation with legislative approaches.

What they’re saying: Some suggest that the U.S. Supreme Court will be required to make the final decision on the constitutionality of these bans.
* This is spurred by possible inconsistencies in the decisions of the appeals courts and a potential evolution in the interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.

Between the lines: The outcome of these ongoing lawsuits carries significant weight for transgender children and their families, highlighting the stakes involved in judicial interpretations of the Fourteenth Amendment’s clauses.

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