Case: Doe v. Kupor
1:26-cv-02723 | U.S. District Court for the District of District of Columbia
Filed Date: Aug. 3, 2026
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding complete
Case Summary
This case challenges the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's exclusion of chemical and surgical gender-affirming care from federal employee and postal health benefit plans, which the plaintiffs alleged discriminated against transgender and gender non-conforming federal employees and their dependents.
On August 3, 2026, five current or former federal employees filed a putative class action against the Director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The plaintiffs asserted a claim of sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, alleging that the exclusion of gender-affirming care discriminated against transgender and gender non-conforming employees and their dependents by denying coverage for treatments available to other plan members. Represented by private counsel and the Human Rights Campaign, the plaintiffs sought declaratory and injunctive relief, compensatory damages for medical expenses paid out of pocket after coverage was eliminated, and attorneys' fees. Also on August 3, 2026, the plaintiffs filed a motion to seal a limited amount of personal identifying information, a motion to proceed under pseudonyms, and a motion for a protective order.
President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14168 "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government" on January 20, 2025. OPM then released Federal Employee Health Benefits (FEHB) Carrier Letter 2025-1b, which prohibited insurance coverage for gender-affirming care for members of the federal and postal employee health plans starting on January 1, 2026. The plaintiffs alleged that similar hormone-based treatments and surgeries were covered for plan members whose sex aligns with their gender, but not for transgender or gender non-conforming plan members. Carrier Letter 2025-1b included a limited exception for FEHB and Postal Service Health Benefits (PSHB) members who were mid-treatment for gender-affirming care, but OPM's Carrier Letter 2026-7, released March 31, 2026, removed all exceptions for 2027 health plans.
On August 14, 2026, the court granted the motion to seal in part and denied it in part, allowing plaintiffs to proceed under pseudonyms and ordering all identifying information sealed. The court denied the protective order because Rule 26(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure governed protective orders for discovery disputes, and the court would not issue a protective order for this case which was not in discovery.
On August 17, 2026, the case was assigned to District Judge Amit P. Mehta.
The case remains ongoing.
Summary Authors
Elana Regan (9/5/2026)
People
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73709970/parties/doe-v-kupor/
Mehta, Amit Priyavadan (District of Columbia)
Harris, Cathy Ann (District of Columbia)
Patel, Ami Rakesh (District of Columbia)
Puth, Jonathan C. (District of Columbia)
Speyer, Kelsey (District of Columbia)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Resources
Docket
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73709970/doe-v-kupor/
Last updated Sept. 28, 2026, 3:09 a.m.
Docket for: DOE v. KUPOR
Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Healthcare Access and Reproductive Issues
Special Collection(s):
Transgender Healthcare Access Cases
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: Aug. 3, 2026
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Current and former federal employees who are or will be enrolled in the FEHB or the PSHB who sought or will seek gender affirming care for themselves or their dependents, and who were or will be denied coverage for such care pursuant to OPM’s FEHB Program Carrier Letter Numbers 2025-01b and 2026-07.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Pending
Defendants
Federal
Office of Personnel Management
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Title VII (including PDA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e
Other Dockets:
District of District of Columbia 1:26-cv-02723
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Sought:
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Public benefits (includes, e.g., in-state tuition, govt. jobs)
Discrimination Area:
Discrimination Basis:
Affected Sex/Gender(s):
LGBTQ+:
Medical/Mental Health Care:
Reproductive rights:
Reproductive health care (including birth control, abortion, and others)
Case Summary of Doe v. Kupor, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/48383/ (last updated 9/5/2026).