8th Circuit Upholds Arkansas Ban on Transgender Medical Care for Minors

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled in an 8-2 decision to allow Arkansas' Save Adolescents From Experimentation (SAFE) Act to take effect, overturning a previous injunction that blocked the law. This legislation prohibits medical professionals from performing gender-affirming procedures such as puberty blockers, hormone therapies, and surgeries on minors, citing concerns about irreversible effects on fertility, bone density, and development. The court held that the law does not discriminate based on sex or transgender status, aligning with the Supreme Court's recent ruling in United States v. Skrmetti regarding a similar Tennessee law, and rejected parental rights claims to obtain such treatments for their children. The ruling follows a similar decision by the Tenth Circuit upholding Oklahoma's ban on transgender procedures for minors, reinforcing the courts' stance that there is no deeply rooted constitutional right for parents to exempt children from these medical regulations. Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin and Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders praised the decision as a victory for protecting children. This ruling enables enforcement of the SAFE Act, which was the first of its kind and has inspired similar laws in over two dozen states.