The US will begin expelling transgender soldiers from the army within 30 days.
The decision is contained in a memorandum released by the Pentagon on Wednesday.
247 - The United States will begin, within the next 30 days, to remove transgender soldiers from its military, unless they obtain an exemption in a case-by-case review. The decision is contained in a memorandum released by the Pentagon on Wednesday (26) and is part of a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's executive order, which seeks to exclude transgender service members from military service.
"Service members who have a current or history of gender dysphoria, or who exhibit symptoms consistent with this condition, will be processed for separation from military service," the document details, according to [source]. The Globe.
However, the text allows for exceptions in specific cases. Transgender soldiers may request an individual exemption if there is "a compelling governmental interest in retaining the service member."
According to the report, to obtain this exemption, military personnel must demonstrate that they have never initiated a gender transition process and prove a history of "36 consecutive months of stability in their biological sex, without clinically significant disruption or deterioration in essential areas of social, professional, or other functioning."
Policy regarding transgender military personnel has been subject to change in the United States over the past few years. While Democratic administrations have allowed the open service of transgender soldiers, the Trump administration attempted to bar their continued presence in the Armed Forces.
The United States military had lifted the ban on transgender troops in 2016, during President Barack Obama's second term. Under the new directive, transgender service members already in service could continue to serve openly, and the enlistment of new transgender recruits was scheduled to begin on July 1, 2017.
However, the Trump administration postponed that date to 2018 and subsequently reversed the inclusion policy entirely. Earlier this month, another Pentagon memo banned the entry of new transgender soldiers into the military and suspended gender transition treatment for those already in active service.
