The US Department of Defense is planning to reinstitute gender-affirming care for transgender warfighters.
The directive, outlined in a memo reviewed by Politico, states that the medical policy will be brought back due to a court order that deemed Pentagon Secretary Peter Hegseth’s alteration of it as “unconstitutional” following Donald Trump’s inauguration to his second US presidency in January.
Restoring the policy will sustain the procedures and treatments required by transgender service members and their qualified dependents.
Troops can also continue to receive care from defense medical facilities and the Supplemental Health Care Program (SHCP), which enables them to book appointments with civilian specialists.
Associated SHCP waivers that have been “paused and subsequently cancelled are hereby reinstated,” The Hill reported, citing the government paper.
“Service members and all other covered beneficiaries 19 years of age or older may receive appropriate care for their diagnosis of [gender dysphoria], including mental health care and counseling and newly initiated or ongoing cross-sex hormone therapy,” US Defense Health Affairs’ Acting Assistant Secretary Dr. Stephen Ferrara said in the document.
“Service members may also receive voice therapy and appropriate surgical procedures.”
Trump’s Anti-Trans Strategy
The memo follows the decisions by two federal judges in March to block the defense agency’s broader transgender ban in the military.
A third judge temporarily blocked the armed forces from removing two transgender soldiers from the US Air Force.
Trump’s advocacy against transgender warfighters has been among his top priorities since his first term in 2019.
The president’s reasoning for associated restrictions before Joe Biden took office is based on the administration’s claim that transgender troops are a “too great a risk to military effectiveness and lethality.”
Trump’s reiteration of the ban this year focused on separating “incompatible” personnel with a diagnosis or history of gender dysphoria, while terminating acceptance of future personnel with a similar diagnosis.
