The Pentagon is seen in October 2021. (Robert H. Reid/Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — Troops with a history of gender dysphoria or who show symptoms of the condition will be subject to medical record reviews if they don’t self-report, according to a memo issued Thursday by the Pentagon.
Medical screenings will be the Defense Department’s primary means of involuntarily booting out transgender troops who do not self-identify for a discharge from military service, according to a senior defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity. The medical screenings will be conducted through the department’s individual medical readiness program, which is executed on a rolling basis to assess whether a service member is able to deploy on a mission.
But unit commanders can also initiate medical screenings of service members suspected of having gender dysphoria if they do not self-identify as the Pentagon works to weed out transgender people. Gender dysphoria is the distress that a person feels because their assigned gender and gender identity don’t match. The medical condition has been linked to depression and suicidal thoughts.
“[This] is also consistent with what we expect and require of commanders generally, to ensure that their service members are fit and capable for duty — whether it’s under this policy or any other qualification where they may have concern that that service member requires medical intervention or is not able to perform their duties,” the official said.
The Pentagon announced a June 6 deadline last week for active-duty transgender troops, and a July 7 deadline for Reserve members to identify themselves voluntarily for an honorable discharge from military service. It followed a Supreme Court ruling on May 2 that allows the Trump administration to enforce a ban on transgender people in the military, while legal challenges to the policy proceed. President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have taken the stance that transgender troops and those with gender dysphoria are not deployable and are ineligible for military service.
“The implementation requires some steps to ensure that those who go forward in service remain eligible to meet the high standards of the department. The department requires high standards to ensure that the force is ready to fight and win the nation’s wars as called upon,” the official said.
Approximately 1,000 troops across the services have already self-identified as having been diagnosed with gender dysphoria, Sean Parnell, chief Pentagon spokesman, said last week. The senior defense official on Thursday was unable to provide an update on those numbers.
Roughly 2,000 transgender people serve in the military, representing less than 1% of active-duty service members. There are about 4,200 troops diagnosed with gender dysphoria serving in the active-duty, National Guard and Reserve forces, another senior defense official said in February.
Troops who self-identify by the applicable deadline will begin the separation process within 30 days. Troops who self-identify for voluntary separation will be provided an honorable discharge and voluntary separation pay.
Separation pay will be determined based on rank, time in service and whether the member left service voluntarily or involuntarily. For example, the official said, an enlisted member at the fifth pay grade with 10 years of service would receive approximately $101,000 if they voluntarily separated versus less than $51,000 if they were forced out of the military. Similarly, an officer at the third pay grade with seven years of service would receive about $125,000 if they voluntarily separated. For an involuntary separation, it would be about $62,000.
“The department encourages currently serving service members who are impacted by the policy to elect to do the voluntary identification and voluntary separation process, which may afford certain benefits not available to those who go through the involuntary separation process,” the official said.
Those voluntarily separating can also utilize pre-separation counseling, temporary health care coverage, employment assistance, financial counseling and community reintegration services. But troops who voluntarily separate will not be authorized to participate in SkillBridge, which is a program that allows troops to use the last 180 days of their military contract to learn a civilian trade.
