Supreme Court allows transgender surgery lawsuit to proceed against Catholic hospital

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – The US Supreme Court on Monday declined to review an appellate court ruling that a California Catholic hospital violated gender identity discrimination law when it refused to perform a hysterectomy on a trans-identified female, the Christian Post (CP) reports. The case now returns to state court for the plaintiff to proceed with their lawsuit against the hospital.

The case originates in a request for a hysterectomy made by trans-identified female Evan Minton at Dignity Health’s Mercy San Juan Medical Center, CP said. The hospital refused to perform the surgery on the grounds that it would violate the ethical and religious directives for Catholic Health Care Services.

Minton was able to obtain the surgery at another Dignity Health health facility, but filed a lawsuit against the Mercy San Juan Medical Center on the grounds she had been discriminated against as a transgender person, CP reports. Although the federal district court found in favor of the hospital, an appellate court determined in 2019 that “Dignity Health discriminated against Minton” in violation of California state law, CP reports.

The hospital went on to file a petition for a writ of certiorari with the US Supreme in March 2020, asking the court to reverse the lower court decision. In its petition, the hospital said: “this case poses a profound threat to faith-based health care institutions’ ability to advance their healing ministries consistent with the teachings of their faith.”

Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neal Gorsuch would have heard the “petition for a writ of certiorari” in the case of Dignity Health v. Minton, Evan, CP said.

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