Gender Identity

Eugene Volokh | 10.29.2025 3:50 PM

From Judge Jamal Whitehead (W.D. Wash.) in Queerdoc, PLLC v. U.S. Dep't of Justice:

On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14168, "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government." The order declared it "the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female," stated these sexes are "not changeable," and characterized "gender ideology" and "gender identity" as a "false claim."

The following week, President Trump issued Executive Order 14187, "Protecting Children from Chemical and Surgical Mutilation." 90 Fed. Reg. 8771. This order characterized gender-affirming medical care as "the maiming and sterilizing of a growing number of impressionable young children" and declared it "a stain on our Nation's history" that "must end." The order directed DOJ to "prioritize investigations and take appropriate action to end deception of consumers, fraud, and violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act."

On April 22, 2025, Attorney General Pamela Bondi issued a memorandum titled "Preventing the Mutilation of American Children." The memorandum promised that DOJ would "act decisively to protect our children and hold accountable those who mutilate them under the guise of care" and directed the Consumer Protection Branch of DOJ's Civil Division to "undertake appropriate investigations of any violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act by manufacturers and distributors engaged in misbranding by making false claims about the on- or off-label use of puberty blockers, sex hormones, or any other drug used to facilitate a child's so-called 'gender transition.'"

On June 11, 2025, DOJ's Civil Division issued a memorandum stating it would "use all available resources to prioritize investigations of doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and other appropriate entities" consistent with the Executive Orders and Attorney General's directives. The Civil Division memo identified two investigative priorities: (1) "possible violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and other laws" related to medications used in gender-affirming care, and (2) False Claims Act violations by providers who "evade state bans on gender dysphoria treatments by knowingly submitting claims to Medicaid with false diagnosis codes."

That same day, DOJ served QueerDoc with an administrative subpoena under Section 248 of the Health Insurance Portability &........

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