The US Supreme Court has recently upheld a Tennessee law that prohibits gender transition care for minors, a decision that is expected to have far-reaching implications across the nation as 25 states have similar laws in place. In a 6 to 3 vote, the justices determined that the 2023 law, which limits minors' access to treatments like puberty blockers, does not constitute discrimination. The case, known as United States v Skrmetti, involved three Tennessee transgender teenagers, their parents, and a doctor advocating for transition medications, who argued that the state's ban violated the US constitutional guarantee of equal protection under the law by discriminating based on sex.

Chief Justice John Roberts, who authored the decision, stated that the law, referred to as SB1, is not discriminatory towards transgender individuals. He noted that there is an ongoing debate among medical experts regarding the risks and benefits of administering puberty blockers and hormones for conditions like gender dysphoria, gender identity disorder, and gender incongruence. Roberts concluded that SB1's prohibition on such treatments directly addresses this uncertainty. The Tennessee law prohibits any procedure that allows a minor to identify or live as a gender inconsistent with their sex, or that addresses discomfort or distress related to a mismatch between the minor's sex and asserted identity. While treatments like puberty blockers and hormone therapies are used for various medical conditions, the families challenging the law argued that their children are unfairly singled out, as the law still permits minors with other medical needs to receive such medications. They also contended that the ban infringes on a parent's right to access necessary care for their children.

The dissenting opinion came from the three liberal justices - Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sotomayor, who authored the dissent and vocalized her strong disagreement from the bench, argued that the ban results in medical discrimination based on sex and that the Court's ruling abandons transgender children and their families to political influences. She expressed concern that the decision would cause harm to transgender children and their loved ones. The Biden administration supported the families in the case, while the Trump administration, although withdrawing its support, allowed the case to proceed for the court's consideration.