Tennessee Department of Health bars employees from using preferred pronouns

Date:

A recent Tennessee Department of Health directive bars employees from using pronouns in their email signatures. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

The Tennessee Department of Health has banned the employ of preferred pronouns in staff emails, mirroring similar directives issued by federal agencies in response to orders issued by the Trump Administration.

The ban on the employ of preferred pronouns is reflected in a “communication policy branding standards” March 5 policy update. 

The updated policy about state employees emails says that “gender pronouns may not be included in the subject line, body, or signature line for purposes of identifying the preferred pronouns of the sender.”

“Pronouns may not be used in an email unless they are being used within a sentence in the place of a noun.”

The policy revisions came at the “authority of the Commissioner of Health,” said a spokesperson. Dr. Ralph Alvarado — a former Republican state senator from Kentucky and one-time running mate with former Kentucky governor Matt Bevin — has been commissioner of the department since 2023.

Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Ralph Alvarado has barred the use of pronouns in department email signatures. (Photo: John Partipilo) Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Ralph Alvarado has barred the employ of pronouns in department email signatures. (Photo: John Partipilo)

The health department’s directive reflects a broader national rollback of policies intended to recognize the identities of nonbinary individuals in and out of government. 

Dean Flener, a health department spokesperson, initially responded to questions about a policy change by saying there was “not a new policy.”

The previous version of the health department policy, however, revealed no instructions on the employ of preferred pronouns. That prior policy was revised March 5. 

Flener said the update reflects a “more comprehensive” reiteration of existing department policy.

“The Department’s Communication Policy previously addressed what may and may not be included in employee emails and auto-signatures,” Flener said in response to additional questions from the Lookout.

“The updated language in the policy reiterates those existing requirements in a more comprehensive manner,” he said. 

The recent policy also adds one more prohibition: “emails may not include inspirational quotations.”

DOH pronoun policy

GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.

SUBSCRIBE

 

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Share post:

Popular

More like this
Related

State prepares to apply for federal disaster aid after ‘total devastation’ over the weekend

County officials are continuing to tally damages throughout Mississippi,...

Arkansas veterans join nationwide protest against Trump’s purge of VA workforce

Veterans marched on Washington, D.C., and in cities across...

The tranquil part out noisy: Mississippi political leaders tolerate tax burden on destitute

Former Gov. Haley Barbour finally said the tranquil part...