Pete Hegseth Pauses All Medical Procedures For Transgender Military Members Promising to Treat Them 'With Dignity and Respect'

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's Pentagon has paused all medical procedures for transgender military members. In a memo dated February 7, the Department of Defense said its mission "requires Service members to abide by strict mental and physical standards," and that the force's "lethality, readiness, and warfighting capability" depends on "Service members meeting those standards."

"The Department must ensure it is building 'One Force' without subgroups defined by anything other than ability or mission adherence. Efforts to split our troops along lines of identity weaken our force and make us vulnerable. Such efforts must not be tolerated or accommodated," the document adds.

The memo goes on to make reference to President Donald Trump's executive order "Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness," saying that "expressing a 'false gender identity' divergent from an individual's sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standard necessary for Military Service."

"Individuals with gender dysphoria have volunteered to serve our country and will be treated with dignity and respect. The Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness is authorized and delegated the authority to provide additional policy and implementation guidance outside of the normal DoD issuance process, including guidance regarding service by Service members with a current diagnosis or history of gender dysphoria, to implement this direction," the document concludes.

This is far from the first decision regarding transgender people during the Trump administration. Last week the president signed an executive order ban transgender athletes from participating in women's sports. "With this executive order the war on women's sports is over," Trump said when signing the order.

In late January the president also signed an executive order banning gender transition treatments for individuals under 19 years old. "It is the policy of the United States that it will not fund, sponsor, promote, assist, or support the so-called 'transition' of a child from one sex to another, and it will rigorously enforce all laws that prohibit or limit these destructive and life-altering procedures," said Trump in a statement as reported by AP News.

The order's provisions include barring federally funded insurance programs, such as Medicaid and TRICARE, from covering gender transition services for minors. Additionally, it tasks the Department of Justice with aggressively pursuing litigation and legislative measures to oppose these procedures.