Published April 6, 2026
On April 6, 2026, EPPC Scholars Rachel N. Morrison and Eric Kniffin submitted a public comment in support of HHS’s proposal to rescind a Biden-era foster care final rule that created special rules for children who identify as “LGBTQI+.” The 2024 rule required agencies to ensure that all such foster care children are offered a “Designated Placement” where their “identity” would be “affirmed” and claimed that “non-affirming” behaviors/interactions are unsafe and inappropriate.
The scholars’ comment opens by agreeing with HHS that the Biden rule should be rescinded because a feeral court found it illegal. It then summarizes the court’s reasoning and offers additional reasons why the Biden foster care rule violates the Administrative Procedure Act and the First Amendment.
The scholars also argue that, even if the Biden foster care rule were not illegal, HHS should still rescind it because the rule is a radical proposal that harms children and families. The scholars’ comment cites their previous comments in opposition to the Biden proposal, an article by Rachel Morrison on the proposal, and multiple studies showing that the Biden rule is based on bad science.
The comment explains that rescinding the Biden foster care rule would save money and advance President Trump’s agenda, and closes by urging HHS to continue revising or rescinding other Biden-era rules that advance gender ideology.
Other organizations submitted comments supporting the proposed rescission, including:
- Advancing American Freedom
- Alliance Defending Freedom
- American Family Association Action
- The Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission
- National Catholic Bioethics Center, Catholic Medical Association, National Catholic Partnership on Disability, and The National Association of Catholic Nurses, USA
Eric Kniffin is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where he works on a range of initiatives to protect and strengthen religious liberty as part of EPPC’s Administrative State Accountability Project.
