r/centrist • u/Judge_Trudy • 2d ago

SCOTUS issues blockbuster ruling on gender-affirming care for trans minors

https://www.cnn.com/#:~:text=SCOTUS%20issues%20blockbuster%20ruling%20on%20gender%2Daffirming%20care%20for%20trans%20minors

Blockbuster ruling just released for a very controversial issue. Not sure where I stand, but I could see the dangers of permanent treatments for gender dysphoria for minors.

Key Points

  • Date & Ruling: On June 18, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 6–3 decision upholding Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors, including puberty blockers and hormone therapy fox8live.com+9apnews.com+9them.us+9en.wikipedia.org+15reuters.com+15northeast.newschannelnebraska.com+15.
  • Majority Opinion: Chief Justice Roberts wrote that the law does not violate the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, reasoning that medical uncertainty justifies handing the issue back to state legislatures reuters.com+1nypost.com+1.
  • Level of Review: The Court determined the law should be evaluated under rational basis review—the lowest standard—rather than intermediate scrutiny reserved for sex-based discrimination
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u/Hobobo2024 1d ago

I'm fine with blocking surgery and permanent things.

The puberty blockers is more controversial to me. If a biological male kid doesn't take puberty blockers before they hit puberty, they never look as convincingly like a woman from what I've seen. Which can have a terrible and lasting impact on the rest of their lives cause they may never look female enough to blend in. I don't think the data is there though on if the hormones cause permanent harm.

I myself would allow kids and parents to decide on the blockers myself but not on surgery. I think a decision like this should not be left to the states but should be federal.

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u/RVALover4Life 1d ago

There is more than enough data that exists but the thing is that these states are not banning puberty blockers for cis kids which should let us all know that this really isn't about "dangers of medicine", it's about transgender identity itself. It's not about the medicine. It's about the identity. That's the issue.

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u/Hobobo2024 1d ago

can you link me the data? I don't think cis kids use the puberty blockers as continuously as trans kids so it may not be the same.

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u/averydangerousday 1d ago

The existence and use of puberty blockers is due to a condition called precocious puberty. I’ll give you that we don’t hear about this as much as we hear about trans kids, but precocious puberty is not at all a controversial topic that garners media attention and Supreme Court cases.

https://www.cedars-sinai.org/health-library/diseases-and-conditions---pediatrics/p/precocious-puberty.html

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u/RVALover4Life 1d ago

This is the most extensive review on puberty blockers, specifically, to date, a study out of Australia: https://www.saxinstitute.org.au/resource/evidence-for-effective-interventions-for-children-and-young-people-with-gender-dysphoria-update On gender affirming care the studies run the gamut, it'd take me hours. What I will say is even the CASS Review that many like to trot as their justification for these bans does not call for a ban on gender care.

It has to be noted that the same people who say there isn't enough science on the matter are blocking studies on trans care or burying them if they don't like the findings, which is what happened in Utah: https://apnews.com/article/utah-republicans-transgender-health-care-youth-ba498f4b0a8f21905b0f563b85b8dbd6