Judge exempts religious groups from paying for trans procedures

Two government agencies can’t penalize Catholic employers and healthcare providers who refuse to support transgender procedures, a federal judge ruled Thursday. U.S. District Judge Peter Welte of North Dakota permanently barred the Department of Health and Human Services from enforcing its 2024 rule that included so-called gender identity in its definition of sex-based discrimination. The rule would have pulled federal funds from healthcare providers who declined to pay for transgender procedures. The rule included a case-by-case religious exemption process, but Welte said it didn’t sufficiently protect the Catholic plaintiffs’ freedom to practice their faith.

Welte also permanently blocked the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from advising employers to fund transgender procedures for employees. It had communicated to the employers that failure to do so could lead to discrimination lawsuits and penalties.

What else did Welte decide? The plaintiffs—two Catholic homes, an order of nuns, and the Catholic Benefits Association—also asked Welte to block both federal agencies from enforcing similar rules governing abortion and some fertility treatments. But Welte rejected that request, saying their claims weren’t sufficiently developed for court review.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s report on a judge’s ruling blocking a Texas in-state tuition law for illegal immigrants.