Aiden Vasquez and Mika Covington
v.
Iowa Department of Human Services
Petitioners are Iowa Medicaid beneficiaries who were denied Medicaid coverage for gender-affirming surgery. Petitioners sought judicial review arguing Iowa Administrative Code rule 441—78.1(4)—which excludes Medicaid coverage for surgical procedures related to gender identity disorders—violates the Iowa Constitution’s equal-protection clause and the Iowa Civil Rights Act’s (ICRA) prohibitions on gender-identity and sex discrimination. Petitioners further argued that a recent amendment to ICRA—which states that ICRA’s public accommodation protections do not require the State or local governments to provide gender-affirming surgery—violates the equal protection clause of the Iowa Constitution. The district court held that rule 441—78.1(4) and the amendment to ICRA both violate the equal protection clause. The district court further held that petitioners’ ICRA claims were barred because petitioners failed to exhaust their administrative remedies. The district court also denied petitioners’ requests for attorney’s fees under ICRA. The Iowa Department of Human Services appeals and the petitioners cross-appeal from the district court’s ruling.
Appellee
Aiden Vasquez and Mika Covington
Appellant
Iowa Department of Human Services
Attorneys for the Appellee
Rita Bettis Austen
Shefali Aurora
Lisa Nowlin-Sohl
F. Thomas Hecht
Tina B. Solis
Seth A. Horvath
Attorneys for the Appellant
Samuel P. Langholz
Thomas J. Ogden
Supreme Court
Oral Argument Schedule
15-15-5
Jan 18, 2023 9:00 AM
