Justice Department Supports Catholic Nuns Against New York’s Transgender Policies

The Justice Department is supporting a group of Catholic nuns who contend that New York’s transgender policies could force them to choose between their religious beliefs and caring for indigent cancer patients in their final days. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division emphasized that states should not compel Americans to abandon their religious beliefs under the guise of gender ideology.

For over a century, the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne have provided free palliative care to indigent cancer patients. Under New York’s new law, these religious women may face a tough choice between adhering to their faith and risking their license if they want to continue their service to the dying.

The Dominican Sisters operate a home for terminally ill cancer patients in Westchester County. They argue that New York’s law could subject them to fines, loss of their operating license, and other penalties if they resist complying with gender identity-related requirements, including pronouns, room allocations, and access to sex-specific facilities.

Non-compliance with the New York transgender mandate could lead to fines of up to $2,000 per violation, escalating to $5,000, court-ordered compliance, loss of licensing, imprisonment for up to one year, and fines up to $10,000.

The transgender mandate, the “Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and people living with HIV long-term care facility residents’ bill of rights,” came into effect on Nov. 30, 2023. It prohibits long-term care facilities from discriminating against any resident based on their actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status, as stated in a press release from Governor Hochul’s office.

The sisters claim the law would require them to assign rooms based on gender identity rather than biological sex, allow access to opposite-sex bathrooms, implement preferred pronouns, ensure staff training in gender ideology, and display a public notice of compliance.

In their lawsuit filed on April 6, the sisters noted that during a four-year period from Feb. 1, 2022, to Jan. 31, 2026, the New York State Department of Health received no complaints from their residents, compared to over 55,000 complaints against other nursing homes.

Martin Nussbaum, general counsel for Catholic Benefits Association, representing the sisters, highlighted the potential loss of licensing risk for both the nursing facility, Rosary Hill Home, and its professionally licensed staff.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s formal recognition of this case as one of ‘general public importance’ sends a message that a state’s policy on gender ideology does not overshadow religious freedom protection embedded in the nation’s framework, stated Nussbaum.

In response, a spokesperson for New York Gov. Kathy Hochul indicated that this is another attempt by the Trump administration to use the justice system politically. Hochul’s office claimed the policy change to a single fiscal intermediary had saved taxpayers over a billion dollars while reducing fraud and waste.