The new Utah State Correctional Facility is pictured in Salt Lake City on Thursday, June 30, 2022. The U.S. Justice Department alleges that Utah corrections officials violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to to provide a transgender woman equal access to healthcare services.(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
(Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the State of Utah, including the Utah Department of Corrections, on Tuesday.
In the lawsuit, the Justice Department alleged that Utah corrections officials violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to to provide a transgender woman equal access to healthcare services.
The U.S. Justice Department said the transgender inmate’s gender dysphoria is a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Utah corrections officials reportedly denied the inmate equal access to health care services after she repeatedly requested hormone therapy.
“Delays or refusals to provide medical treatment for people with gender dysphoria can cause irreparable harm, including debilitating distress, depression, attempts at self-treatment and even death by suicide,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clark of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in a press release.
Related: DOJ claims Utah prison discriminated against transgender woman
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