Supreme Court blocks Trump policy restricting transgender inmate treatments

The Supreme Court declined to allow the Trump administration to enforce a new Bureau of Prisons policy that would have ended gender-affirming medical treatments for transgender inmates, CBS News reported. The policy aimed to cut off surgical and hormone therapies as well as social accommodations for inmates diagnosed with gender dysphoria.

The court's unsigned order left in place a lower court injunction blocking the policy, which the Justice Department had sought to revive through an emergency appeal. Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented, indicating they would have permitted enforcement of the policy, according to CBS News.

The policy was part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to restrict transgender rights, following a 2025 executive order instructing federal agencies to recognize only biological sex. The Bureau of Prisons had announced it would no longer provide gender transition surgeries, hormone treatments, or social accommodations such as wigs and makeup, NBC News reported.

Transgender rights advocates and inmates challenged the policy in court, noting that hormone treatments had been provided by the Bureau of Prisons since 1992. The new rules would have ended treatment for nearly 1,000 transgender inmates in federal custody, according to CBS News.

The Supreme Court's decision means the Bureau of Prisons cannot proceed with the policy restricting gender-affirming care for transgender inmates, maintaining access to these treatments for now, NBC News reported.