gender dysphoria

The harassment campaigns are organized online, raising questions about what role social media platforms should play in preventing abuse.

The ruling from the Virignia-based court could become a tool to challenge legislation restricting access to medical care and other accommodations for transgender people, advocates say.

Attorneys representing individuals and groups say they plan to file a federal lawsuit challenging the rule, which went into effect Sunday.

Under the rule, which goes into effect Aug. 21, Medicaid would not cover puberty-blocking meds, hormones and hormone “antagonists,” gender-affirmation surgeries and “other procedures that alter primary or secondary sexual characteristics.”

The decision came after the Florida Department of Health last month filed a petition asking the medical board to initiate a rule-making process on the contentious issue.

The petition proposes what is known as a “standard of care” that would prohibit patients under age 18 from receiving sex-reassignment surgery and puberty-blocking, hormone and hormone “antagonist” treatments.

Seven out-of-state scientists and a Yale law professor say the proposal ignores “established science” and relies on "biased and discredited sources, stereotyping and purported ‘expert’ reports that carry no scientific weight.”

A meeting drew more than 150 people, with supporters of the proposal - many of sporting “Let Kids Be Kids” decals and making biblical references - vastly outnumbering opponents.

If the rule is approved, Medicaid would not pay for gender-affirming treatments in Florida. That includes puberty blockers, hormones and sex-assignment surgeries for both youth and adults.

AHCA, which runs most of the Medicaid program, published a proposed rule and set a July 8 hearing on the issue. National and state legal and LGBTQ-advocacy groups have vowed to fight the proposal.