BREAKING: Supreme Court blocks Trump administration from enforcing transgender inmate policy 

The Supreme Court on Wednesday blocked the Trump administration from enforcing its policy barring hormone therapy and other special accommodations for transgender inmates.

In an executive order signed on his first day back in office, President Donald Trump directed the Bureau of Prisons to ensure that “no Federal funds are expended for any medical procedure, treatment or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”

In response to the order, the prison bureau issued guidance that staff must refer to inmates by their “legal name or pronouns corresponding to their biological sex” and banned the use of funds for “any items that align with transgender ideology.” The bureau also said no funds can be used “for any medical procedure, treatment or drug for the purpose of conforming an inmate’s appearance to that of the opposite sex.”

Three transgender inmates sued over the policy, saying it violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on “cruel and unusual punishments” and arguing that the “gender-affirming care” is medically necessary.

As of February 2025, more than 2,000 inmates within the federal prison system identified as transgender.

Taxpayer-funded sex-change surgeries for prisoners were an issue in the 2024 presidential campaign, with Trump running an ad bashing Democrat Kamala Harris for supporting them.

The Supreme Court’s Wednesday order keeps in place a lower court order that barred the prison bureau from enforcing the new transgender policy as litigation continues in the case.

Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented from the majority, saying they would have granted the Trump administration’s request to pause the lower court ruling. The brief order did not explain the court’s reasoning.

When contacted by Heartlander News, the bureau declined to comment on the decision.

This is a breaking story and may be updated.