Tennessee Department of Health bars employees from using preferred pronouns

by Anita Wadhwani, Tennessee Lookout
March 17, 2025

The Tennessee Department of Health has banned the use 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 use 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.

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

DOH pronoun policy

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