A federal judge on Wednesday struck down a rule created by the Biden administration that aimed to protect the privacy of women seeking abortions and patients receiving gender transition treatments.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, based in Amarillo, Texas, ruled that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) exceeded its authority by limiting states’ ability to enforce their public health laws when it issued the rule last year.
The rule prevented healthcare providers and insurers from sharing information about legal abortions with state law enforcement seeking to punish someone related to the abortion.
Judge Kacsmaryk, appointed by former President Donald Trump, wrote that HHS “lacked clear delegated authority” to create special privacy protections for medical procedures it favored politically.
In December, the judge had temporarily blocked enforcement of the rule against a Texas doctor, Carmen Purl, who challenged it in court. Wednesday’s ruling invalidates the rule nationwide.
Purl is represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian legal group. Matt Bowman, senior counsel with the group, praised the decision, saying the rule “would have weaponized laws about privacy that have nothing to do with abortion or gender identity.”
The Biden administration introduced the rule to support reproductive healthcare access after the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturned Roe v. Wade, which had protected abortion rights nationwide.
The rule was also a response to some Republican-led states, like Texas, banning abortion and attempting to restrict out-of-state abortion travel.
Texas has filed a separate lawsuit against the rule, which is still pending in federal court in Lubbock, Texas. HHS said last month that former Trump-appointed agency leadership is reviewing its stance in the case.
When announcing the rule, President Biden said no one should have their medical records “used against them, their doctor, or their loved one just because they sought or received lawful reproductive health care.”
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