US 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.
A senior defense official on Thursday laid out what could be a complicated and lengthy new process aimed at fulfilling Donald Trump’s directive to remove transgender service members from the US military despite years of service alongside all the other 2 million US troops.
Earlier this month, the Pentagon announced plans to remove in short order the 1,000 members of the military who openly identify as trans, and giving those who have yet to so identify openly 30 days to remove themselves.
That memo was fueled by a supreme court decision allowing the Trump administration to enforce a ban on trans military members. The defense department has said it will follow up by going through medical records to identify others who have not come forward.
The latest order to commanders relies on routine annual health checks that service members are required to undergo. Another defense official said the Pentagon had 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 their gender identity.
The defense officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide details of the new policy. The process raises comparisons to the earlier “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 6 June to voluntarily identify themselves to the defense department, and troops in the national guard and reserve have until 7 July.
The department is offering a financial incentive to those who volunteer to leave, although some who have put their hand up point out that it is far from genuinely voluntary. They will receive roughly double the amount of separation pay of those who do not come forward.
A new question about gender dysphoria is being added to service members’ annual health 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.
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 was the duty of the service member and the commander to comply with the new process.
Officials have said that as of 9 December 2024, there were 4,240 active-duty troops diagnosed with gender dysphoria national guard and reserve. But they acknowledge the actual number may be higher.
Trump tried to ban transgender troops during his first term, while allowing those currently serving to stay on. Joe Biden overturned the ban after he became president.
The new policy does not grandfather in those currently serving and only allows for limited waivers or exceptions.
Trump and his defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, claim that transgender troops do not meet “military standards” with Hegseth stating baldly on social media: “No More Trans @ DoD” and denigrating transgender people during recent public comments.
The Associated Press contributed reporting
