Idaho’s Trans Care Ban for Minors Looks Set to Fall on Appeal

The Ninth Circuit appeared ready Wednesday to uphold an order that has kept Idaho from enforcing a ban on gender-affirming care against a transgender minor who says it violates her constitutional equal protection rights.

Idaho’s attorney John J. Bursch, of Alliance Defending Freedom, said it’s crucial to revive the ban because it protects children from treatments that are “experimental and carry heavy risks.” The law regulates based on the diagnosis, not sex or trans status, and is rationally related to the state’s legitimate interests, he said.

Chase Strangio, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney representing plaintiffs Pam Poe and her ...