Trans state workers win court victory against Ron DeSantis’ law that restricts their care – LGBTQ Nation

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis makes comments during the second day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum. The second day of the RNC focused on crime and border policy. Photo: Jasper Colt / USA TODAY NETWORK via IMAGN

Last week, a federal judge overturned Florida’s ban on equal pay for state employees, calling the state’s insurance program “facial discrimination.”

“Our clients have dedicated their careers to improving Florida, and as a result they are being denied the critical medical care they need to improve their lives,” said Samantha Past, staff attorney with the ACLU. of Florida, in a statement celebrating the ruling.

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Discrimination has no place here, and we hope this decision will encourage the state’s commitment to treat members of our transgender community with the respect they deserve and return their care and sacrifice to the state of Florida.

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Judge Mark Walker of the District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Tallahassee Division, said in his ruling that the restrictions are a violation of Title VII. Title VII is a provision of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits discrimination based on protected characteristics, including race, sex, religion, and national origin. In 2020, the Supreme Court ruled that Title VII applies to employment discrimination against LGBTQ+ because such discrimination is not possible without consideration of sex.

“Here, the undisputed facts show that the challenged exclusion applies only to transgender members, since only transgender individuals may seek treatment that affirms their non-disclosed gender. Here, Plaintiffs seek gender-affirming treatment for their gender dysphoria, and therefore, the challenged exemptions apply to them because they are transgender… According to [Lange v. Houston Cnty., Ga.]this amounts to an action by an employer that discriminates under Title VII,” Walker said in the decision.

According to the defendants, who included the Florida Department of Administrative Services and the University of Florida’s Board of Trustees, it was not known why gender equality was prohibited, but it was said that this ban started in the 1970s when such care was taken. “trial.” There was no medical or financial reason for exclusion.

Decision on the case, Claire et al. v. Florida Department of Mgmt Servs. and al., where the plaintiffs were former and current Florida government employees. Jami Claire, Kathryn Lane, and Ahmir Murphy were all denied gender-affirming care under a given insurance policy.

The case published in January 2020 and the ACLU filed a supplemental brief in the case in June of this year in an effort to combat state insuranceold bans on SB 254, a powerful ban on gender-based care passed in 2023.

Although some provisions of SB 254 were repealed earlier this year, a few remain, including a ban on gender-based care in state insurance, restrictions on the non-standard practice of affirmative surgeries gender for children, and individual consent forms for adults. karo.

“We are very grateful that the court is holding the state accountable for its facial discrimination policy that causes transgender government employees to be treated unequally,” said Simone Chriss, director of the Transgender Rights Initiative at Southern Legal. Counsel, in a statement. “As the court made clear, ‘Title VII prohibits all types of discrimination on the basis of sex and gender, no matter how it manifests itself, and we are glad that this old vestige of state-sanctioned discrimination has been left in the past where it belongs.”

This court will hold a separate hearing to determine how much money will be awarded to the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs were represented by the Florida chapter of the ACLU, Southern Legal Counsel, and Legal Services of Greater Miami.

The Florida Department of Administrative Services and the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.

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