Military commanders will be told to send transgender troops to medical
checks to oust them
[May 16, 2025]
By LOLITA C. BALDOR
WASHINGTON (AP) — Military commanders will be told to identify troops in
their units who are transgender or have gender dysphoria, then send them
to get medical checks in order to force them out of the service,
officials said Thursday.
A senior defense official laid out what could be a complicated and
lengthy new process aimed at fulfilling President Donald Trump’s
directive to remove transgender service members from the U.S. military.
The new order to commanders relies on routine annual health checks that
service members are required to undergo. Another defense official said
the Defense Department has scrapped — for now — plans to go through
troops’ health records to identify those with gender dysphoria.
Instead, transgender troops who do not voluntarily come forward could be
outed by commanders or others aware of their medical status. Gender
dysphoria occurs when a person’s biological sex does not match up with
their gender identity.
The defense officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details
of the new policy. The process raises comparisons to the early “Don’t
Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, which at times had commanders or other troops
outing gay members of the military who — at the time — were not allowed
to serve openly.
Active-duty troops will have until June 6 to voluntarily identify
themselves to the Defense Department, and troops in the National Guard
and Reserve have until July 7.
The department is offering a financial incentive to those who volunteer
to leave. They will receive roughly double the amount of separation pay
than those who don’t come forward.
Initially, officials said the Defense Department would begin going
through medical records to identify anyone who did not come forward
voluntarily. That detail was not included in the new guidance released
Thursday.
While the department believes it has the authority to review medical
records, it would rather go through a more routine health assessment
process, the defense official said. Traditionally, all service members
go through a health assessment once a year to determine if they are
still medically able to serve.
A new question about gender dysphoria is being added to that assessment.
Active-duty troops who do not voluntarily come forward would have to
acknowledge their gender dysphoria during that medical check, which
could be scheduled months from now.
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U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks at the Al Udeid Air
Base, Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Doha, Qatar. (AP Photo/Alex
Brandon)
A unit commander could expedite the health assessment.
Under the new policy, “commanders who are aware of service members
in their units with gender dysphoria, a history of gender dysphoria,
or symptoms consistent with gender dysphoria will direct
individualized medical record reviews of such service members to
confirm compliance with medical standards.”
The defense official said it is the duty of the service member and
the commander to comply with the new process. The department is
confident and comfortable with commanders implementing the policy,
and it does not believe they would use the process to take
retribution against a service member, the senior defense official
said.
It comes after the Supreme Court recently ruled that the Trump
administration could enforce the ban on transgender people in the
military while other legal challenges proceed. The court’s three
liberal justices said they would have kept the policy on hold.
Officials have said that as of Dec. 9, 2024, there were 4,240 troops
diagnosed with gender dysphoria in the active duty, National Guard
and Reserve. But they acknowledge the number may be higher.
There are about 2.1 million total troops serving.
In a statement, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said earlier this
month that about 1,000 troops already have identified themselves and
“will begin the voluntary separation process” from the military.
That can often take weeks.
Trump tried to ban transgender troops during his first term, while
allowing those currently serving to stay on. Then-President Joe
Biden overturned the ban.
The new policy does not grandfather in those currently serving and
only allows for limited waivers or exceptions.
Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth allege that troops with
gender dysphoria don’t meet military standards. Hegseth has tied his
opposition to a campaign to rid the department of “wokeness.”
“No More Trans @ DoD,” Hegseth wrote in a post on X. In a recent
speech to a special operations conference, he said: “No more dudes
in dresses. We’re done with that s---.”
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