Attorney General Ellison calls on court to protect gender-affirming care

Joins coalition of 18 attorneys general in amicus brief to support plaintiffs in PFLAG v. Trump

February 21, 2025 (SAINT PAUL)  — Attorney General Keith Ellison today joined a coalition of 18 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland supporting Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ+ Equality, and individual patients and their families, in their lawsuit against the Trump Administration.

On February 4, 2025, PFLAG challenged President Trump’s Executive Orders 14168 and 14187 targeting transgender individuals: those orders claim that gender identity is a “false” idea and attempt to strip federal funding from institutions that provide life-saving gender-affirming care for young people under the age of 19. In their brief, Attorney General Ellison and the coalition support the claim of PFLAG and the other plaintiffs that these actions blatantly and unlawfully discriminate against transgender youth based on their identity.

“While the Trump Administration continues to deliberately bully our transgender children and deny them medically necessary care that is proven to save their lives, I will continue to tell the truth about gender-affirming care and use every tool I have available to protect this care and the people who need it,” Attorney General Ellison said.

Minnesota and the states submitting today’s amicus brief have enacted their own laws, policies and protections for transgender residents, including transgender youth under the age of 19. In Minnesota, the following protections apply:

• Coverage for gender-affirming care for its Medicaid and MinnesotaCare programs is required by Minn. Stat. § 256B.0625, subd. 3a.
• Commercial insurance plans are required to provide the same coverage through Minn. Stat. § 62Q.585.
• The Minnesota Human Rights Act provides comprehensive protections in the areas of employment, housing, public services, public accommodations, education, provision of credit, and business for Minnesotans and includes protections related to “gender identity,” as defined by the Act. See Minn. Stat. §§ 363A.03, subd. 50; 363A.01 et seq.
• Minnesota enacted a suite of robust protections through revisions and amendments to various laws in 2023, establishing Minnesota as a “trans-refuge state,” prohibiting enforcement of out-of-state laws interfering in the provision of gender-affirming health care in Minnesota, reflecting the State’s policy to allow unrestricted access to medically-necessary health care. See Laws of Minnesota, 2023 (Reg. Session), Chap. 29 (Apr. 26, 2023).

Attorney General Ellison and the coalition argue in their brief that there is considerable medical evidence showing that gender-affirming care improves the health outcomes for individuals with gender dysphoria, a medical condition characterized by significant distress that occurs when an individual’s gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth. Denying this care can have tragic consequences on patients’ physical and mental well-being. A recent study conducted by the University of Washington found that in individuals ages 13-20, receiving gender-affirming care was associated with 60% lower odds of moderate to severe depression and 73% lower odds of having suicidal thoughts over a 12-month period.

They also argue that the Administration’s Executive Orders have sown chaos and confusion among gender-affirming care providers and caused anxiety and fear among transgender youth and their families. The Trevor Project, which provides confidential counseling to LGBTQ+ youth, reported a 700% increase in access to its crisis services since the Presidential election and a 46% increase in volume following the inauguration. In the immediate aftermath of the Executive Orders, facilities across the country halted gender-affirming care for young people, citing fears of losing federal funding for healthcare unrelated to gender-affirming care. 

While such care remains available in Minnesota, the Executive Orders have undeniably and unacceptably scared providers and patients here and across the country. On February 7, the State of Minnesota, along with the states of Washington and Oregon, filed a federal lawsuit to block application of portions of Executive Order 14187 in Minnesota. On February 14, the court issued a temporary restraining order blocking application of the directives in Minnesota. On February 19, the State of Colorado joined Minnesota and the other states as a plaintiff in the filing of an amended complaint that broadens the relief sought to cover additional acts by the Administration. The court will hear a motion for issuance of a preliminary injunction on February 28.

In today’s filing, the amici states urge the Court to grant PFLAG’s motion for a preliminary injunction.

Joining Attorney General Ellison in the amicus brief are the attorneys general of Massachusetts, Maryland, and California, who co-led it, and the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.