Supreme Court Keeps Trump Prison Policy on Hold
Court denies stay, requires continued gender‑affirming care for transgender inmates.
Key facts
- Supreme Court denied the Trump administration’s request for a stay, keeping a lower court injunction in place (S1).
- The order states the application for stay was denied and notes that Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito would side with the administration (S1).
- The Bureau of Prisons policy would have terminated hormone therapy and other treatments for transgender inmates (S1).
- The American Civil Liberties Union estimates more than 2,000 transgender inmates in federal custody, about 800 receiving hormone therapy (S1).
- The New York Times reports that the justices agreed to continue preventing the Bureau of Prisons from implementing the policy (S2).
On October 21, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the Trump administration’s request for a stay, keeping a lower court injunction that blocks the Bureau of Prisons from ending gender‑affirming care for transgender inmates (S1).
The Court’s order was brief. It read that the application for stay presented to the Chief Justice was denied, and that Justices Thomas and Alito would side with the administration (S1).
A federal district judge had barred the Bureau from implementing its policy this summer, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit also rejected the administration’s request to pause the judge’s order (S1).
The American Civil Liberties Union says there are more than 2,000 transgender inmates in federal custody, and about 800 of them have been prescribed hormone therapy (S1).
The New York Times notes that the justices agreed to continue preventing the Bureau of Prisons from implementing a policy that would prohibit gender‑transition medical treatments (S2).
Context
The Trump administration tried to stop hormone therapy for transgender inmates, arguing it would create security risks. A lower court injunction halted the policy, and the Supreme Court has now upheld that injunction. The ACLU is involved, estimating the number of affected inmates.
How outlets headlined it
How this was made
Compiled by our AI newsroom from 3 independent outlets, checked by a separate AI editor against the sources. Only claims found in the sources are reported. Spot an error? Every source is linked below.
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