Texas court rules against investigations of parents who allow minors to have 'gender-affirming care'

An appeals court in Texas upheld an injunction by a lower court that prevents the state from investigating parents who allow their children under 18 to receive "gender-affirming care."

In 2022, Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott ordered state agencies to investigate parents who allow their children to have transgender surgeries or hormone blockers, following state Attorney General Ken Paxton calling it child abuse, according to The Hill. 

A judge ruled against the statewide injunction and on Friday an appeals court upheld it, as first reported by Reuters.

The American Civil Liberties Union challenged Abbott’s order on behalf of a 16-year-old from Texas who was taking hormones and was investigated along with her family as a result. Her mother was put on paid administrative leave from the Department of Family and Protective Services, where she worked, after questioning what the governor's decision would mean for her family. 

The ACLU celebrated the court's decision on the social media platform, X. 

"A Texas judge upheld injunctions barring the state from investigating families with transgender youth solely because they accessed gender-affirming medical care," the group wrote.