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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a memo Thursday that active-component transgender service members will have 30 days and those in the National Guard and Reserve have 60 days to voluntarily self-separate or be forced out.
“Approximately 1,000 service members who have self-identified as being diagnosed with gender dysphoria will begin the voluntary separation process,” said Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, in a statement.
Gender dysphoria is generally defined as a state of distress experienced by individuals whose gender identity differs from the sex assigned at birth.
The directive came two days after the Supreme Court paused an order by a federal judge in Washington barring the Defense Department from banning transgender men and women from the military.
The Supreme Court’s ruling does not impact ongoing litigation over the policy.
The May 8 guidance notes policy memoranda issued related to the January 27 Executive Order 14183, “Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness,” would be reinstated.
Trump’s January 27 EO stated that “expressing a false ‘gender identity’ divergent from an individual’s sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service.”
In February, the Pentagon issued guidance stating that the military has a policy to “establish high standards for service member readiness, lethality, cohesion, honesty, humility, uniformity, and integrity.”
That policy, the memo continues, is “inconsistent with the medical, surgical, and mental health constraints on individuals with gender dysphoria or who have a current diagnosis or history of, or exhibit symptoms consistent with, gender dysphoria.”
Service members who voluntarily separate will be eligible for voluntary separation pay if they choose that route, according to the department.
Those who involuntarily separate “may be required to pay back any bonuses they received.”
Last week’s memo addresses procedures to remove transgender troops who self-identified for voluntary separation but is unclear about the “involuntary” separation process.
“On conclusion of the self-identification eligibility window, the Military Departments will initiate involuntary separation processes pursuant to the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Memorandum ‘Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness: Military Department Identification,’” the memo adds.
Defense officials estimate 4,240 personnel currently serving in the active component, Guard and Reserve have been diagnosed with gender dysphoria.
─ By Jennifer Hickey
