Utah Gov. Cox signed HB252, barring gender-affirming care for transgender people in state custody
On March 19, 2025, Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed House Bill 252, "State Custody Amendments," which bars government entities from providing gender-affirming medical care — including hormone therapy — to transgender people held in state prisons and juvenile detention. Sponsored by Rep. Karianne Lisonbee and carried in the Senate by Sen. Derrin Owens, the measure was enacted while the federal government was suing Utah over inadequate care for transgender prisoners.
Actors
- Spencer Cox (Governor, Utah)
- Utah State Legislature
- Karianne Lisonbee (State Representative, Utah)
- Derrin Owens (State Senator, Utah)
On March 19, 2025, Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed House Bill 252, "State Custody Amendments," into law, restricting the treatments government entities may provide to individuals in state custody. The measure bars gender-affirming medical care, including hormone therapy, for transgender people held in Utah prisons and juvenile-detention facilities, and also amends housing provisions for youth in juvenile detention and secure-care settings. It was sponsored by Rep. Karianne Lisonbee and carried in the Senate by Sen. Derrin Owens.
The bill was enacted as the federal government was suing Utah over inadequate care for transgender prisoners. By denying a class of medically recognized care to transgender people specifically, while the state retains full control over their access to any treatment, the law singles out a marginalized group held in government custody for exclusion from care available to others.
Updates
2025-12-12 — Five transgender inmates sued Utah over the treatment ban [4]
In December 2025, five transgender people incarcerated in Utah sued state agencies, arguing that HB252 and the resulting denial of gender-affirming care left them without treatment for gender dysphoria in violation of their rights.
Why we recorded this
Civil-rights protections bar government from disadvantaging people based on protected characteristics, and people in state custody retain a right to medically necessary care that the government controlling them cannot arbitrarily withhold. Utah enacted HB252, which bars government entities from providing gender-affirming medical care, including hormone therapy, to transgender people held in its prisons and juvenile-detention facilities. This archive records when government uses its control over a captive population to deny a class of medical treatment on the basis of gender identity.
Sources
- H.B. 252 State Custody Amendments — Utah State Legislature — Utah State Legislature primary accessed July 14, 2026
- Bill banning hormone therapy for transgender inmates heads to governor's desk — Utah News Dispatch investigative accessed July 14, 2026
- Utah House green lights restrictions for transgender inmates in state custody — KUER investigative accessed July 14, 2026
- 5 transgender Utah prison inmates sue over medical treatment ban — Salt Lake Tribune investigative accessed July 14, 2026
See also
- Utah Gov. Cox signed HB316, requiring jail and prison housing by birth sex and restricting transgender inmate placement
- Utah Gov. Cox signed HB283 shielding foster parents who refuse children and limiting care for youth in custody
- Utah enacted H.B. 424 tightening the commission that bars transgender students from sex-designated school sports
- Utah Gov. Cox signed HB269 restricting transgender access to sex-designated spaces and college housing
- Utah Gov. Cox signed S.B. 16, banning gender-affirming surgery and new hormone treatment for transgender minors
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