Judge orders gender-affirming surgery for transgender prisoner in federal case in Illinois

After what's being called a "landmark decision," a federal prisoner may become the first to receive gender-affirming surgery.

Judge Nancy Rosenstengel of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois ruled Monday that the U.S. Bureau of Prisons must immediately find a surgeon for Christina Nichole Iglesias.

The federal court ruling comes after three years of litigation. Iglesias faced repeated delays and denials from the prisons bureau, according to a statement sent to USA TODAY by the ACLU of Illinois. 

The bureau is now required to provide a detailed timeline for Iglesias's surgery, including a nationwide search to identify a qualified surgeon. Rosenstengel ordered the prisons bureau to make weekly reports to the court and ensures Iglesias receives surgery and recovers before her sentence ends in December.

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“I am hopeful that I will finally get the care I need to live my life fully as the woman I am,” Iglesias said. The Bureau of Prisons "has denied me gender-affirming surgery for years – and keeps raising new excuses and putting new obstacles in my way. I am grateful that the court recognized the urgency of my case and ordered BOP to act.”

More than 1,200 transgender people are in the bureau's custody. No federal prisoner – past or present – has ever received gender-affirming surgery.

“For years, Cristina has fought to receive the health care the Constitution requires. The court’s order makes clear that she needs gender-affirming surgery now and that BOP cannot justify its failure to provide this medically necessary care,” said Joshua Blecher-Cohen, an ACLU of Illinois staff attorney who represents Iglesias. “We hope this landmark decision will help secure long-overdue health care for Cristina – and for the many other transgender people in federal custody who have been denied gender-affirming care.”

The Bureau of Prisons told USA TODAY that it does "not comment on pending litigation or matters subject to legal proceedings, nor do we comment on the conditions of confinement for any individual or group of inmates."