Supreme Court ruling on trans healthcare for kids may be a gamechanger in Florida

A U.S. Supreme Court decision released Wednesday about a Tennessee law that bans transgender health care for children could have impacts on groups challenging Florida‘s own law.

The U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision ruled that Tennessee’s law, which bans children from accessing hormone therapy and other medical interventions, isn’t sex discrimination and doesn’t violate the Equal Protection Clause in the Constitution.

The ruling means groups challenging similar laws targeting medical care for gender dysphoria could face an uphill battle in court.

Last year, a Florida federal judge struck down a state law that banned medical treatments for children with gender dysphoria, saying it was unconstitutional.

Florida appealed, and the case is still pending in court.

Here’s what to know about what the U.S. Supreme Court ruling could mean for Florida’s case.

What is the Florida law?

Florida’s law, passed in 2023 and pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, prohibits children from receiving treatments like puberty blockers, hormone therapy or sex reassignment surgeries for gender dysphoria.

That’s also what the Tennessee law does. But Florida’s law is broader.

Florida law also restricts how adults can receive medical treatment for gender dysphoria. Adults can get treatment from physicians only, not nurse practitioners or other health care providers.

A group of plaintiffs challenging Florida’s law have targeted the restrictions for adults along with the broad ban on children’s treatments.

How is it similar to and different from the SCOTUS case?

Plaintiffs’ lawyers argued Florida’s law is a violation of the Equal Protection Clause in the Constitution, saying it discriminates based on transgender status and sex.

In the Tennessee case, lawyers arguing against the state law made a similar argument. But the U.S. Supreme Court rejected it. The court sided with Tennessee, which argued that the laws were limiting access based on age and medical purpose, not sex discrimination.

But unlike in the case the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in on, the lawyers challenging Florida’s law have argued that the law deserves more scrutiny because it was motivated by anti-transgender animosity from lawmakers.

The federal judge that deemed Florida’s law unconstitutional agreed that dislike of transgender people motivated the law. Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling noted that a law would deserve more scrutiny if it was motivated by unjust discrimination.

Moving forward, courts looking at Florida’s law will have to consider that separate argument, which has not yet been ruled on by any higher court.

What comes next?

In January, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments about the Florida ban.

During those arguments, one judge asked the state’s attorney if he thought the court should wait for “further legal developments from the Supreme Court.”

An attorney representing the state, Mohammad Jazil, said the court should wait, because “Florida’s law is nearly identical to Tennessee’s.”

It’s not clear when the court’s three-judge panel will issue its ruling in the case, or if attorneys on either side will ask to hold new arguments in light of the SCOTUS decision.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said on social media that the court decision was “a big win for common sense and an even bigger win for children.”

Simone Chriss, an attorney with Southern Legal Counsel challenging Florida’s law, said the court’s decision is “profoundly disappointing.”

She noted that because attorneys were able to establish that Florida’s law was motivated by anti-transgender animosity, the cases are different.

“While my heart is broken for the families impacted by this cruel order, rest assured that we will continue to litigate the cases challenging Florida’s trans healthcare bans and restrictions,” Chriss said in a statement.

This story was originally published June 18, 2025 at 12:47 PM.