U.S.Court order
Supreme Court refuses to let Bureau of Prisons enforce policy ending transgender inmates' care
The Supreme Court on October 21, 2026, denied the Trump administration's request to pause a federal judge's order barring the Bureau of Prisons from enforcing its February 2026 policy on health care for transgender inmates. The policy would have stopped inmates from obtaining hormone therapy and social accommodations such as makeup and wigs. Justices Alito and Thomas would have granted the request.
Order (SCOTUSblog) → · ABA Journal (The Washington Post)
Key points
- The brief, unsigned order gave no reasoning.SCOTUSblogABA Journal (The Washington Post)
- Senior U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth issued the order on August 26 in a class action brought by three transgender inmates.SCOTUSblog
- A divided D.C. Circuit panel had earlier refused to freeze Lamberth's order.SCOTUSblog
- The bureau said it adopted the 2026 policy independently of President Trump's 2025 executive order on the issue.SCOTUSblog
- The inmates argued the bureau gave no reasoned explanation for reversing a three-decade status quo.SCOTUSblog
Sources2 articles across 2 outlets
Filed under
Court orderU.S.U.S.D.D.C.D.C. Cir.Civil rightsHealthcareAdministrativeFor practitionersFor governance