The Pentagon will resume the Biden-Harris administration policy of using taxpayer dollars to pay for sex-change surgeries and cross-sex hormones for trans-identified soldiers, bucking efforts by the Trump administration to enhance military readiness by ending such practices and banning trans-identified individuals from serving in the military.
A memo from the Pentagon dated Monday and released on Thursday states that the DOD is reverting to the Biden-Harris policy concerning trans-identifying service members, according to Politico.
The directive comes after two federal judges last month blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to stop individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria from enlisting, which the government argued would ensure “military readiness.”
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“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,” Stephen Fry, the Pentagon’s acting assistant secretary of Defense for health affairs, stated in a memo dated April 21.
In response to an inquiry from The Christian Post, the Pentagon referred the outlet to the Department of Justice. The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.
On Thursday, the Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to allow it to enforce its policy regarding trans-identifying service members as the legal battles continue.
At the beginning of his second presidential term, Trump signed an executive order titled “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” citing a longstanding DOD policy that dictates the medical standards for U.S. military service.
According to the volume of instructions, it is DOD policy to ensure that service members are “Free of medical conditions or physical defects that may reasonably be expected to require excessive time lost from duty for necessary treatment or hospitalization, or may result in separation from the Military Service for medical unfitness.”
As the executive order noted, mental and physical health conditions, including bipolar disorder, suicidality, or other conditions requiring medication or medical treatment, are “incompatible” with active duty. The order asserted that individuals expressing a “false ‘gender identity’ cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
In February, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth issued a written policy to implement the executive order. The document stated that the DOD would not fund service members’ sex-change surgeries or cross-sex hormone therapy, and that the department only recognizes two sexes, male and female.
“Military service by Service members and applicants for military service who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria is incompatible with military service,” the document stated. “Service by these individuals is not in the best interests of the Military Services and is not clearly consistent with the interests of national security.”
Last month, a three-judge panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied the Trump administration’s request to pause a lower court’s decision blocking enforcement of a ban on trans-identified military service members. By denying the administration’s request, the appellate court left in place the preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle.
In his 65-page ruling, Settle stated that the government’s arguments regarding trans-identifying individuals serving in the military were not “persuasive.” He claimed that the Trump administration failed to provide evidence that trans-identifying service members over the past four years had negatively impacted the military.
“The government’s unrelenting reliance on deference to military judgment is unjustified in the absence of any evidence supporting ‘the military’s’ new judgment reflected in the Military Ban,” Settle wrote.
Settle’s ruling followed a separate decision by U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes in Washington, D.C., an appointee of former President Joe Biden. According to Reyes, “leaders have used concern for military readiness to deny marginalized persons the privilege of serving.”
In an interview with C-SPAN’s morning program “Washington Journal” on Feb. 5, Rep. Pat Harrigan, R-N.C., said he’s been told the number of trans-identified individuals who’ve signed up to serve in the military has been as high as 15,000. The congressman said many join the military because they can get their prescription drugs, procedures and trans surgeries paid for. “We need to focus on deployability. […] they are not ready to deploy at any given time,” he said, noting that it “ultimately harms our readiness and harms the culture of our military.”
As many as 15,000 trans-identified individuals signed up to join the U.S. military to get FREE elective sex-change surgeries and hormonal drug cocktails, says @PatHarriganNC
“That harms our readiness; it harms the culture of our military.” pic.twitter.com/xmh8UapC0j
— Melissa Barnhart (@MelBarnhart) February 5, 2025
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
