HHS disclaims Section 504 coverage of gender dysphoria ("Clarification" notice)
- Date
- Actor
- HHS Office for Civil Rights
- Agency
- Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- Type
- Guidance/memo (Federal Register notification)
Summary
HHS published "Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability...; Clarification" (90 FR, doc. 2025-06127), announcing that the 2024 Section 504 final rule's preamble discussion of gender dysphoria "does not have the force or effect of law" and will not be enforced as extending disability protections to gender dysphoria. The notice aligned HHS with the 17 plaintiff states in Texas v. Becerra/Kennedy (N.D. Tex.), who then told the court they no longer pressed their constitutional challenge to Section 504 itself.
Status
In effect; superseded in ambition by the December 19, 2025 proposed rule that would codify the exclusion (see 2025-12-19 item). Texas v. Kennedy remains stayed/administratively paused. (See also section 10.) Update, Nov. 3, 2026: On Nov. 3, 2026, HHS published the final rule (Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance, FR Doc. 2026-22380), which reads the statutory exclusion of gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments to cover gender dysphoria. It takes effect Jan. 4, 2027. See supplement S10.
As recorded in the data of . Check the sources for anything newer.
Documents
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Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance; Clarification, 90 Fed. Reg. 15,412 (Apr. 11, 2025).