Press Release

Court to decide whether feds can force doctors to give controversial drugs and treatments to children Becket attorneys in court tomorrow to block the harmful federal Transgender Mandate

Media Contact

Ryan Colby 202-349-7219 media@becketlaw.org

Additional Information

WASHINGTON – With almost every doctor in America on the hook to perform gender transition procedures on children diagnosed with gender dysphoria under the federal government’s reading of the Affordable Care Act, Becket will be in court Wednesday to protect both medical conscience rights and child patients from unscientific meddling by Washington bureaucrats. In Franciscan Alliance v. Cochran, a healthcare network with a Catholic mission to follow the work of St. Francis of Assisi and an association of over 19,000 Christian healthcare providers sued the federal government after a 2016 mandate, known as the Transgender Mandate, required doctors to perform gender transition procedures on any patient, including a child, even if the doctor believed the procedure could harm the patient. Becket obtained a decision that the Transgender Mandate was unlawful in 2019 but is now back in court seeking lasting relief on behalf of doctors and hospitals whose medical judgment and religious beliefs alike forbid them from participating in transition procedures they believe to be harmful.

What:
Oral argument at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Franciscan Alliance v. Cochran

Who:
Joe Davis, counsel at Becket

When:
Wednesday, March 3, 2021, at 2:30 p.m. EST

Where:
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
Listen live at https://5thcircuit.streamguys1.com/east.
(Link will be live once oral argument begins)

A Becket attorney will be available for comment immediately following the hearing.

For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Ryan Colby atmedia@becketlaw.orgor 202-349-7224.Interviews can be arranged in English, Chinese, French, German, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.